After a person sustains a traumatic brain injury, there is a 30% chance that person will suffer a second TBI. This may be because the person engages in risky behaviour. Or it might be because of the disabilities from the first injury, which cause worsened coordination as well as judgment. In the most obvious cases, a boxer just goes back into the boxing ring over and over. Boxers sustain an enormous number of TBI. There is some brain injury during every match.

There is data that shows a greater chance of a severe TBI if an athlete who was hit in the head goes back into the game – whatever sport – and gets hit again. This is called Repetitive Head Injury. It can happen during sporting events at school, or to professional athletes. The more contact in the sport, the more dangerous. In the United States, high school students participating in American football are at risk, but injuries also occur to (soccer) football players, and basketball players. TBI also seen but less frequently in athlete’s participating in baseball, ice hockey, lacrosse, cheerleading and wrestling. Athletes frequently re-enter the game after a “mild concussion,” and can be reinjured then, or at another time.

A new group of people at risk of Repetitive Head Injury are Iraq war veterans. Depending on where they are when “roadside bomb” explodes, they can have everything from severe TBI to minor concussion. Soldiers who are not severely injured may wind up back in Iraq, at risk for the same injury.

Late complications of repeated traumatic brain injury include Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.

Parkinson’s disease is a motor disorder. It occurs after damage to the basal ganglia, deep in the brain. The more severe the TBI, the more likely a patient will develop Parkinson’s, although it is still rare. Patients suffering from Parkinson’s have tremors, loss of spontaneous movement, shuffling gate, lack of facial expression, and stiffness.

Alzheimer’s disease is more common after TBI. It starts to show up about 20 years after the injury. The association between Alzheimer’s disease and TBI was first found in statistical analysis, but now studies have shown physical changes in the brain after TBI that resemble the amyloid plaques developed by Alzheimer’s patients.

There is also a condition called Dementia pugilistica which career boxers develop. It is dementia with the symptoms of Parkinson’s. Post traumatic dementia refers to dementia developing after one severe TBI that resulted in coma. There are probably many patients with overlapping symptoms that fall into one of these groups after TBI.

At the other end of the age spectrum, a rare complication after a skull fracture can occur in children who are still growing. A cyst can form, made up of the meninges and containing cerebrospinal fluid, pushing out through a lineal skull fracture. The cyst, called a leptomeningeal cyst, is difficult to treat and usually involves putting in a shunt to get the fluid back into the system. The eventual goal is for the cyst to shrink and the opening in the skull to be closed.

Brain Injury Compensation Claim Solicitors

We are qualified lawyers specialising in compensation claims for personal injury resulting from UK accidents caused by the negligence of a third party. We deal with physical injuries of the utmost severity including catastrophic damage to the spinal cord and brain and consequential psychological damage. If you would like to speak to a brain injury compensation claims solicitor without any obligation whatsoever just use the contact form or call the helpline. Our advice is free and if you decide to use our services we operate a totally risk free no win no fee scheme. Compensation is paid in full with no deductions and win or lose there is no charge.

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