Traumatic Brain Injury

The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke defines a traumatic brain injury as an injury that occurs when a sudden physical assault on the head causes damage to the brain. The damage can be focal, confined to one area of the brain, or diffuse, involving more than one area of the brain. Traumatic brain injury can result from a closed head injury or a penetrating open head injury.

According to the Brain Injury Association of America, one person in the U.S. sustains a traumatic brain injury every 21 seconds. An estimated 5.3 million Americans (a little more than 2% of the U.S. population) currently live with disabilities resulting from traumatic brain injury, and 1.5 million Americans sustain a traumatic brain injury each year.