BRAIN INJURY STATISTICS

The following information is taken from the "Coma Guide for Cargivers" from the Delaware Health and Social Services of the Division of Services for Aging and Adults with Physical Disabilties, and is republished here with their express consent. We wish to thank Linda Heller of that department for her assistance in preparing this material. General There are 2 million Traumatic Brain Injuries each year (One every 15 seconds). 500,000 of these injuries require hospital admission. Every 5 minutes someone dies from a head injury.     - 140,000 people each year.     - 75,000 - 100,000 in the U.S.     - Over half of the deaths occur at the time of the incident or within two hours of hospitalization. Every 5 minutes someone becomes permanently disabled due a head injury. 70,000 - 90,000 of those who survive will have lifelong disabilities.2,000 more will live in a persistent vegetative state. Over 50% of those who sustain a Brain Injury have been intoxicated at the time or injury. The cost of Traumatic Brain Injuries in the U.S. is over $48 Billion each year! Causes 51% - Motor Vehicle Accidents 21% - Falls 12% - Assaults and Violence 10% - Sports and Recreation 6% - Other Survivors A survivor of severe brain injury faces 5 to 10 years of intensive services and rehabilitation The costs of a severe brain injury often exceed 4 million dollars A majority of head injury survivors are under the age 30 2/3 of those who survive will live a normal span of life, but will require life long services such as vocational rehabilitation and physical therapy. Injury A person does not need to be knocked out or lose consciousness to have sustained a traumatic brain injury. A person does not need to strike their head to sustain traumatic brain injury (eg., whiplash, shaken baby syndrome) Even mild traumatic brain injuries can cause cognitive impairments serious enough to impact a person's ability to enjoy life and to be able to work and earn a living. People who sustain a brain injury are 3 times as likely to sustain a (second) brain injury Those who sustain a second brain injury are 8 times as likely to sustain a (third) brain injury Bicycling About 75% of all bicyclists who die each year die of head injuries 85% of head injuries in bicycle accidents can be prevented by wearing a helmet Demographics Males between the ages of 14 and 24 have the highest rate of injury Males are almost twice as likely to suffer serious brain injuries than females Brain Injuries kill more Americans under the age of 34 than all other diseases combined Children Child abuse is the cause of 64% of all infant head injuries Approximately 1 in 500 school-age children each year receive a head injury severe enough to be hospitalized 1 million children sustain a head injury each year 165,000 children will be hospitalized due to a head injury 1 in 10 of those children hospitalized will suffer moderate to severe impairments Traumatic brain injury is the leading cause of death for children and young adults http://www.headinjuryctr-stl.org/statistics.html