TBI Conditions Flashcards
Properties of a concussion
- Caused by a knock to the head or body.
- Swift onset of short term impairment
- Strictly functional injury
- Clinical symptoms present
- Normal gross imaging report
Assessment of a concussion
1st: Side line evaluation, the SCAT-3, administered by a medical professional
2nd: A medical evaluation (scans etc.)
3rd: Neuropsychological assessment, ImPACT
4 symptom categories for concussions
- Physical: nausea, headache, blurred vision, photosensitivity, loss of consciousness, balance problems
- Sleep: insomnia, difficulty waking up, excessive fatigue, restless sleep
- Emotional: depressed, angry, irritable, anxious
- Cognitive: executive functioning, visuospatial and verbal memory
4 stages of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy
- 1-2 tangles in the sulci of the frontal, temporal or parietal lobes.
- 3+ tangles in more than one lobe
- Tangles in the subsections of the brain
- Tangles everywhere
Other neuropsychological issues seen with CTE
Rigidity, ideomotor apraxia, bradykinesia, assymetrical upper limb rigidity and hypometric vertical saccades.
Assessment for TBIs
Glasgow Coma Scale, assessing language, consciousness and motor functioning
6 possible complications with a TBI
- Edema
- Brain herniation
- Extra/subdural haemorrhage
- Intracranial bleeding
- Skull fracture
- Post-traumatic epilepsy
Recovery of TBIs
Assisted vs Natural recovery
Assisted: Cognitive training to manage and compensate for deficits and psychotherapy
Natural: Diaschisis and plasticity
What does diaschisis entail?
Synaptic pruning of the damaged areas
What does plasticity entail?
Axonal sprouting and dernervation sensitivity
10 factors that affect recovery
- Location and extent of injury
- Time passed since injury
- Age
- Medical health
- Emotional health
- Support system
- Premorbid functioning
- Premorbid personality
- Premorbid intelligence
- Type of treatment
