About Brain Injuries

Brain injury is more common than you might think and it is often called the hidden disability because it is not always obvious. There are a whole range of causes.

Traumatic brain injury

Some injuries are very obvious like a major trauma where people have a direct blow to the head of one sort or another.

Injuries could be caused by:

• An assault

• A fall

• A car accident

• A sport injury

These types of injuries are caused by the skull being fractured and brain being directly damaged, or the brain being moved sharply within the skull that can damage the nerve and brain tissue.

Acquired brain injury

An acquired brain injury is one that occurs after birth, but is not a trauma. An ABI can be caused by infection or disease, for instance meningitis or encephalitis.

Other causes can be:

• Brain tumour

• Stroke and other cardio vascular causes

• Lack of oxygen to the brain

• Toxic affects

There are three main areas that are affected:

• Physical – affecting how the body works

• Cognitive – affecting how the person thinks learns and remembers

• Emotional and behavioural – affecting how the person feels and acts

What not to say to people with brain injury

Please click here to be directed to the Headway UK website page to find out more about the brain and the effects of brain injury https://www.headway.org.uk/about-brain-injury/further-information/about-the-brain/