Traumatic brain injury results from a violent blow to the head or body. Quite often, it is associated with objects that go through brain tissue, including bullets or shattered piece of skull. More-serious injury can result in bruising, torn tissues, bleeding and other physical damage to the brain. Serious injuries can result in long-term complications or even death. Common smptoms appear immediately after the traumatic event while others may appear days or weeks later. They include headache, nausea or vomiting, fatigue or drowsiness, problems with speech, and loss of balance. Other symptoms inlcude blurred vision, ringing in the ears, a bad taste in the mouth or changes in the ability to smell. People with traumatic brain injury may experience sensitivity to light or sound, loss of consciousness for a few seconds to a few minutes, mood swings, and difficulty sleeping.

The most common cause of traumatic brain injury is a blow or other traumatic injury to the head or body. The degree of damage depends on factors such as the nature of the injury and the force of impact. An example of such is falls from bed or a ladder, or bathroom. This kind of injury may also be caused by vehicle-related collisions. Collisions involving cars, motorcycles or bicycles are a common cause of traumatic brain injury. Other causes include gunshot wounds, domestic violence, and other assaults are common causes. It is also common among athletes involved in sports such as soccer, boxing, football, baseball, lacrosse, skateboarding, and hockey.

This kind of brain injusry is increasingly found among children, especially newborns to 4-year-olds, young adults, especially those between ages 15 and 24m, and adults aged 60 and older. To prevent it, individuals are encouraged to always wear a seat belt in a motor vehicle, not driving under the influence of alcohol, and wearing helmets while riding a bicycle, skateboard, motorcycle, snowmobile. Chicago