Childhood TBIs Can Cause Serious Developmental Delays

CAMP HILL, PA, March 12, 2012 (Press-News.org) Medical professionals have long thought that traumatic brain injuries do not affect young children as significantly as they do adults. Two new studies, however, suggest otherwise. Young children suffering from severe traumatic brain injuries (TBI) may actually suffer continued impairment later in life than experts first thought.

The studies yielded important new information on childhood traumatic brain injuries. Children who suffered severe traumatic brain injuries, for example, had slower intellectual functioning, showing that the traumatic brain injury may have affected their intellectual development.

The studies also found that young TBI victims with lower socioeconomic status were more likely to have reduced intellectual function than children from more privileged homes, indicating a likely disparity in the quality of TBI medical treatment. Stress on the parents coupled with less parental involvement was seen to have a major effect on the child's recovery from the brain injury; in other words, child TBI victims with optimistic, involved parents are likely to heal better and more quickly.

The first study looked at the behavioral, intellectual and social functions of 53 children who had suffered traumatic brain injuries before they turned 3. This particular study focused on children who suffered TBIs through a fall. Researchers compared this group of children with 27 children who had not suffered traumatic brain injuries.

The second study was similar, but focused on children between the ages of 2 and 7 who experienced more severe traumatic brain injuries from car accidents. The children in this study were examined soon after the injury and then again at 12 months, 30 months and 10 years after the injury.

The children with severe traumatic brain injuries were behind their peers in behavioral, social and intellectual development. This persisted for up to three years after the injury. Similar to the first study, the children with more mild traumatic brain injuries did not exhibit deficits nearly as bad as severe TBI victims and generally recovered well.

If your child has suffered a traumatic brain injury due to the negligence of another person, please contact an experienced Pennsylvania accident injury attorney who can help you receive the compensation you need to get your child the resources necessary for recovery, treatment and development.

Website: http://www.pa-injurylaw.com