Tag archives: Brain Injuries

Understanding Acquired Brain Injury and Its Consequences

#AskZevBergman Acquired brain injury is not something you hear or read about, but it afflicts more than 1.5 million people in Canada. Half of the 160,000 brain injuries suffered each year are the result of motor vehicle accidents and falls. ABI is responsible more disabilities in children and adults than any other cause. Preventing brain injuries requires an understanding of how occur and the extent of the damage they can cause. What is acquired brain injury? An acquired brain injury is defined as any damage to the brain occurring after birth and not the result of a congenital or a ... Read more

Compensating Victims Suffering Psychological and Emotional Injuries

#AskPaulMariani Personality changes, insomnia and vivid nightmares are only a few of the symptoms someone could exhibit after witnessing or being involved in a traumatic event. Someone witnessing a family member being struck and killed by a speeding vehicle or the occupant of a building who suffers severe burns in a fire caused by negligent maintenance of a building could both be victims of psychological and emotional injuries even though only one of them suffered physical trauma. Emotional harm caused by an injury to the brain Brain injuries, such as might occur the head of a passenger strikes against the ... Read more

New Law To Protect Children From Effects of Concussions

#AskDanielDiamond It took five years following the death of a 17-year-old rugby player before the passage of legislation aimed at protecting children participating in sports from the risks associated with concussions. The passage by Ontario of legislation establishing safety protocols to protect children and teens from the effects of concussions marks the first legislation of its kind in the country. The law provides protocols coaches, parents and others involved in youth sports must follow to protect children from returning to activities before they have completely healed. The risk of concussions People might mistakenly think of the cause of a concussion only in ... Read more

What parents need to know about children and concussions

#AskSimonDiamond Children always seem to be doing something. Whether riding a bicycle or playing an organized sport, the activities children participate in putting them at risk of suffering a concussion due to an injury to the head. The Government of Canada reports that 64 percent of hospital emergency department visits by children between 10 and 18 years of age are related to sports or other physical activities, and doctors determined that 39 percent of those children were diagnosed with concussions and another 24 percent were suspected of having concussions. Given those statistics, here is what every parent needs to know about their ... Read more

Minimizing The Risk of Concussion in Contact Sports

#AskDanielDiamond Canadian children are falling victim to sports-related head injuries at an alarming rate. Concussions were diagnosed in 39 percent of children between 10 and 18 years of age treated at hospital emergency departments for head injuries suffered during their participation in a sporting event. Another 24 percent of children in the same age group were diagnosed with possible concussions. The Public Health Agency has been allotted $1.4 million to work with Ontario and other provinces on developing protocols and programs addressing the problem posed by sports-related concussions. The focus is on raising awareness of the problem and educating parents, coaches and ... Read more

Challenges Faced By Brain Injury Victims Returning to the Workplace

#AskZevBergman The statistics about brain injuries are shocking. Out of 100,000 children living in Ontario this year, 795 of them will become the victims a brain injury. There are almost half a million people in the province suffering from a brain injury with another person becoming a victim every 3.5 minutes. A brain injury can be severe enough to cause death or lifelong disabilities. For those victims able to do so, returning to work can help to improve their lives, but returning to the workforce can be a difficult transition to make. Disabling effects of brain injuries The effects of a brain ... Read more

Number of Traumatic Brain Injury Victims Increasing Annually

#AskCoreySax It is estimated that more than 100,000 people each year suffer an injury to the brain. The current number of people in Ontario and throughout Canada suffering from brain injuries is estimated to be 1.5 million. Damage to the brain is referred to as an acquired brain injury and includes traumatic and non-traumatic brain injuries. Traumatic brain injury Any bump or jolt to a person’s head could cause a disruption of normal brain activity and be classified as a traumatic brain injury. Leading causes of TBI include: Falls Being hit by an object Motor vehicle crashes Sports injuries Assaults TBI can ... Read more

Wearable Tech And Concussions

#AskDanielDiamond Several news stories have highlighted new wearable tech that is being used to learn more about concussions sustained by athletes. Much of this new technology is aimed at learning more about how impacts during contact-heavy sports damage the brain and the human body. American football is one sport in particular that has been singled out because of the number of retired NFL players who suffer from brain damage. New research suggests that traumatic brain damage can increase a player’s risk of developing serious neurological and psychiatric disorders. Researchers at UCLA have identified master genes that can cause changes in other ... Read more

Can Head Injuries Increase Risk For Some Diseases?

#AskStevenWilder In a recent press release from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), UCLA scientists announce they have found a link between head injuries and an increased risk of developing neurological and psychiatric disorders. This important discovery could help researchers identify new ways to fight disease. Researchers identified what they termed as “master genes” that are responsible for controlling hundreds of other genes. The genes controlled by these master genes are linked to several diseases and disorders including: Autism Schizophrenia Post-traumatic stress disorder Depression Alzheimer’s disease Stroke Parkinson’s disease Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder The UCLA biologists discovered that when a person ... Read more

New Study Conducted by Canadians Shows Long-Term Changes to the Brain After a Concussion, Especially in Younger Athletes

New studies have shown that there are some significant changes to the brains of athletes who have a history of concussions, and this applies even after months (or years) of their injury occurring. Researchers were able to observe a 10 to 20 percent reduction in frontal lobe volume, as well as up to 25 (to 35) percent less blood flow to specific regions of your brain (but most particularly, the frontal lobe). This particular report, which was published in the “Journal of Neurotrama” during the month of July, was conducted by researchers located at St. Michael’s Hospital (in Toronto). They ... Read more