Learn about TBI > Characteristics of TBI

Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI.com, 2006) is:

• the most prevalent TBI
• often missed at time of initial injury
• the reason why 15% of people have symptoms that last one year or more
• the result of the forceful motion of the head or impact causing a brief change in mental status (confusion, disorientation, or loss of memory) or loss of consciousness for less than 30 minutes
• referred to as post-concussive syndrome when describing the post-injury symptoms

Common symptoms of mild TBI

• fatigue
• headaches
• visual disturbances
• memory loss
• poor attention/concentration
• sleep disturbances
• dizziness/loss of balance
• irritability/emotional disturbances
• feelings of depression
• seizures
• Glasgow Coma Scale score of 13-15 (CDC, 2006)

Other symptoms associated with mild TBI

• nausea
• loss of smell
• sensitivity to light and sounds
• mood changes
• getting lost or confused
• slowness in thinking

Moderate TBI:

• results in permanent neurobiological damage
• produces lifelong deficits to varying degrees
• is defined as unconsciousness from 20 minutes to 6 hours and a score on the Glasgow Coma scale of 9 to 12
• takes place in 15 out of 100,000 people
• death occurs 25% of the time (Dawodu, 2005)

Common symptoms of moderate TBI

All areas of functioning may be affected by a moderate injury. This includes cognitive performance, vision, hearing, communication, sensory perception, personality, taste, physical characteristics, social-emotional, and neurological (seizures). These symptoms may be observed to a lesser degree than with a severe TBI.

• coma (to varying degrees)
• confusion
• difficulty with "thinking skills" (memory, attention, judgment)
• blurred vision, loss of vision
• change in hearing acuity
• ringing in ears
• slurred speech
• difficulty understanding spoken language
• difficulty processing sensory input (touch, smell, hearing, etc.)
• personality changes
• loss of taste and/or smell
• paralysis
• lethargy
• loss of bowel/bladder control
• dizziness
• inappropriate emotional responses (irritability, frustration, crying, or laughing)
• seizures

Severe TBI:

• results in significant permanent neurological damage
• produces lifelong deficits to a severe degree
• may require lifetime care and assistance
• is defined as a loss of consciousness greater than 6 hours and Glasgow Coma scale of 3 to 8
• occurs in 14 out of 100,000 people
• results in death 33% of the time (Dawodu, 2005)