Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are among the most severe injuries a person can sustain. Unlike many other kinds of injuries, TBIs do not usually respond to medical treatment. Health care professionals can prevent the TBI from worsening with surgery and can provide rehabilitative support to help someone adjust to their symptoms. However, care cannot reverse the injury and the symptoms it generates.
TBIs can leave people dependent on medical machinery for basic life functions. They can affect motor function and accessory processing. They can change people’s personalities and forever alter their cognition.
People can sustain brain injuries because of car crashes, interpersonal violence or falls. A same-level fall can be enough to trigger a brain injury. Particularly when looking at fall-related TBIs, older adults are at a higher risk than the general public.
What do injury statistics reveal?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 69,000 people lost their lives because of TBIs in 2021. That breaks down to roughly 190 deaths each day. A significant portion of those who sustain TBIs or die because of them are in their golden years.
Older adults are particularly vulnerable to TBIs when compared to all other age groups. Many factors increase their risk, including the use of prescription blood thinners, which can worsen what might otherwise be a mild TBI.
Despite their risk, older adults may struggle to secure an accurate diagnosis when they have a TBI. Health care professionals may assume the underlying cause of their symptoms is another medical condition, such as dementia.
Older adults are more likely to fall than younger individuals. Factors including decreased strength and a shifting center of gravity contribute to their fall risk. They may also struggle to catch themselves when they fall, which may increase their risk of a TBI.
Many older adults associate falls with the risk of moving to a nursing home, so they don’t always seek out medical care immediately after they fall. They are also vulnerable to healthcare providers associating their symptoms with a different medical condition, such as dementia.
Older adults and their loved ones may need help pursuing compensation when a fall leads to a traumatic brain injury. Unsafe property conditions are among the many factors that could lead to a fall and a brain injury.