A blog post on the Los Angeles Times website yesterday summarizes a study published in the journal Pediatrics that shows how a doctor characterizes a mild traumatic brain injury affects the perception of that injury. While a concussion and a mild traumatic brain injury are essentially the same thing, the study found that when doctors diagnosed a child’s injury as a concussion, that child was more quickly discharged and more quickly resumed normal activities.
Parents simply don’t take a diagnosis of “concussion” as seriously as “TBI,” the study found. The lead researcher said that returning to normal activity too soon can put children at risk of a second injury, poor school performance and other complications. Lingering effects of a concussion (TBI) include hearing loss, memory loss, dizziness, headaches and depression. A rising awareness of these complications is due to the experience military doctors are gaining as more and more servicepeople sustain brain injuries in the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Once more, we’re seeing that very thin silver lining around the cloud that is war. With a better understanding of how the brain heals after such an injury, better treatment protocols are sure to follow.