Many people think of a traumatic brain injury as an accident that happens suddenly, such as a fall, a car crash, or a sports injury.
But scientists are discovering that the story may be much more complicated. A head injury may not simply be an isolated event. Instead, it may be closely tied to other health problems that affect the brain.
Traumatic brain injury, or TBI, refers to damage to the brain caused by an external force. Depending on its severity, a TBI can lead to headaches, memory problems, difficulties with thinking, changes in mood, and long-term disability.
Older adults face the greatest danger because aging often brings weaker muscles, poorer balance, slower reactions, and other health conditions that increase the risk of falling.
Previous studies have shown that suffering a traumatic brain injury can raise the risk of developing neurological disorders later in life. Researchers have linked TBI with stroke, dementia, epilepsy, and Parkinson’s disease.
These conditions can seriously affect memory, movement, and independence. However, scientists recently wondered whether these conditions could also increase the likelihood of suffering a head injury in the first place.
To answer this question, researchers led by Dr. Carrie Peltz from the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Health Care System carried out a large study that was published in the journal Neurology.
The study included 13,801 veterans who had recently experienced a traumatic brain injury. Their average age was 78 years. The researchers compared them with 41,403 veterans of the same age who had not experienced a traumatic brain injury.
The team carefully examined medical records from the year before and after the injury. They focused on four neurological diseases that commonly affect older adults.
These included stroke, which damages the brain by interrupting blood flow; dementia, which causes memory and thinking problems; epilepsy, which causes seizures; and Parkinson’s disease, which gradually affects movement and balance.
The researchers found that older veterans who had recently experienced a traumatic brain injury were much more likely to have been diagnosed with one of these neurological disorders during the previous year. The increase in risk was substantial.
People with traumatic brain injury had more than three times the rate of stroke, dementia, and Parkinson’s disease diagnoses compared with those who did not have a head injury. They also had four times the rate of epilepsy diagnoses.
The study then looked at what happened after the traumatic brain injury occurred. The results showed that people who had experienced a TBI were twice as likely to later develop stroke or epilepsy.
They were also significantly more likely to develop dementia. The study did not find a clear increase in Parkinson’s disease after the injury, although the researchers noted that Parkinson’s disease often develops slowly and may require a longer follow-up period to detect.
Why might this happen? The researchers believe that neurological diseases and traumatic brain injuries may create a vicious cycle. Diseases such as stroke, dementia, epilepsy, and Parkinson’s disease often affect walking, balance, judgment, and coordination.
Some people become unsteady on their feet, while others have trouble paying attention to hazards around them. These changes can greatly increase the risk of falling.
Falls are the leading cause of traumatic brain injuries among older adults. Therefore, a person who develops one of these neurological conditions may become more vulnerable to a head injury. In turn, a traumatic brain injury may further damage brain function and increase the risk of additional neurological problems.
The findings have important practical implications. Doctors may need to pay closer attention to fall prevention when older adults are first diagnosed with a neurological condition.
Screening patients for fall risk, improving strength and balance through exercise, reviewing medications that may cause dizziness, and making homes safer may all help reduce the likelihood of a serious head injury.
The study also reminds families and caregivers that even mild balance problems or changes in thinking should not be ignored in older adults. Small problems can sometimes lead to falls with serious consequences.
When reviewing the results, it is important to remember that the study does not prove that these neurological conditions directly cause traumatic brain injuries or that traumatic brain injuries directly cause these conditions. The research only shows that the two are strongly associated.
The study also has several limitations because it did not include people who died after severe head injuries or people with mild injuries who never received medical attention. In addition, all participants were veterans, so the findings may not apply equally to women and other groups in the general population.
Nevertheless, the study provides strong evidence that brain disorders and head injuries are deeply connected and that early prevention strategies may help protect older adults from both.
If you care about stroke, please read studies that diets high in flavonoids could help reduce stroke risk, and MIND diet could slow down cognitive decline after stroke.
For more health information, please see recent studies about antioxidants that could help reduce the risk of dementia, and tea and coffee may help lower your risk of stroke, dementia.
Source: San Francisco Veterans Affairs Health Care System.
