About Acquired Brain Injury
Introduction
Acquired Brain Injury - or "ABI" - refers to any damage to the brain that occurs after birth (with the exception of Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder - FASD). That damage can be caused by an accident or trauma, by a stroke, a brain infection, by alcohol or other drugs or by diseases of the brain like Parkinson's disease.
Brain Injury is common. Over 500,000 Australians have an Acquired Brain Injury. Three out every four of them are aged under 65. As many as two out of every three of these people acquired their brain injury before they turned 25. Three out of every four people with acquired brain injury are men.
The leading cause of Acquired Brain Injury is stroke - where the supply of blood to the brain is stopped by a clot or bleeding. It often results in physical disability as well as changes in a person's thinking and emotions. Around 60,000 new strokes occur every year - a number that's growing as Australia's population ages. Strokes normally occur in older age people, but around one in every five strokes happens to a person aged under 55.
The next largest cause of Acquired Brain Injury is an accident or trauma – known as Traumatic Brain Injury, or "TBI". Such an injury is a result of force applied to the head. Over 22,000 Australians were hospitalized as a result of a Traumatic Brain Injury in 2004-2005. Most of those Traumatic Brain Injuries - over two in every five - were caused by a fall, nearly one in three was due to a motor vehicle accident and one in six was caused by an assault.
When the brain is injured, people can experience a range of disabilities that will affect them physically as well as affecting how they think, feel and behave.
About Brain Injury
Acquired brain injury is a complex and individual condition. The brain can be damaged as a result of an accident, a stroke, alcohol or drug abuse, tumours, poisoning, infection and disease, near drowning, hemorrhage, AIDS, and a other disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis, and Alzheimer’s disease.
The terms head injury, acquired brain injury (ABI), or acquired brain damage (ABD) are used to describe all types of brain damage which occur after birth. Acquired brain injury is distinct from intellectual disability. People with a brain injury may have difficulty controlling, coordinating and communicating their thoughts and actions but generally retain their intellectual abilities.
Brain injury has dramatically different effects on different people. The brain controls every part of our being: physically, intellectually and emotionally. When the brain is damaged, some other part of ourselves will also be affected. Even a mild injury can result in a serious disability that will interfere with a person’s daily functioning and personal activities, often for the rest of their life. While the outcome of the injury depends largely on the nature and severity of the injury itself, appropriate treatment plays a vital role in the level of recovery.
Traumatic Brain Injury
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a type of acquired brain injury (ABI) caused by a blow to the head or by the head being forced to move rapidly forward or backward, usually with some loss of consciousness. This may be the result of a motor vehicle accident, fall, assault, sporting accident, gunshot wound or violent shaking. As a result of this blow or rapid movement, the brain may be torn, stretched, penetrated, bruised or become swollen. Oxygen may not be able to get through to brain cells and there may be bleeding.
The impact on the individual
There is little understanding in the community about brain injury and the impact it can have on individuals. Long term effects are difficult to predict and will be different for each person. It is common for people with a brain injury to get tired more quickly, have difficulty with short-term memory and find it more difficult to concentrate and to remember information.
There are five areas in which people with ABI may experience long-term changes:
- Medical difficulties
- Changes in physical and sensory abilities
- Changes in the ability to think and learn (cognition)
- Changes in behaviour and personality (psychological)
- Communication difficulties.
How serious these changes are, such as a person becoming more impulsive or getting lost easily, may only become clear over time.
The impact on the family
The significant changes in personality and behaviour of a person with a brain injury can be difficult for families to cope with. This has been descrived as the ‘ripple’ or ‘domino’ effect on the family after the injury where other family members experience their own adjustment difficulties. It can be hard for those not immediately affected to understand what a person with acquired brain injury and their family is going through. Family members often cope with the person’s injury in different ways and some may not even acknowledge that the injury exists.
Carers often find they have to support family members in addition to the person with an injury. This can mean that it is harder for carers to deal with their own grief and personal needs. Carers may also be challenged by other family members about the care they are providing. Combined with the demands of caring for a person with a brain injury this can result in carers suffering chronic stress.
The health information in this article has been approved for publication by Dr Roger Chung.
About Brain Injury Australia
Brain Injury Australia (BIA) represents all Australians with acquired brain injury (ABI) whatever the cause. BIA was formed at the first national community-based conference on ABI in 1986. The Federal Government began funding BIA in 1991.
Brain Injury Australia's role includes:
- Advocacy for government program allocations and policies that reflect the needs and priorities of people with an ABI and their families;
- Provision of effective and timely input into policy, legislation and program development through active contact with Federal Government ministers, parliamentary representatives, Federal Government departments and agencies, and national disability organisations;
- Initiation and coordination of national projects;
- Increasing national public awareness of ABI through the implementation of public information programs;
- Monitoring Federal Government consumer consultation processes to ensure that these are of a quality that is meaningful and inclusive of people with ABI and their families; and
Developing a range of strategic alliances that support and enhance the achievement of BIA’s strategic objectives.
Brain Injury Australia's operating principles:
- A professional and responsible approach in representing people with an ABI;
- Decision-making processes that include consultation with people with an ABI and their families and its member organisations;
- A balanced recognition of the needs of all people with a disability and other disadvantaged groups;
- An effective, democratic and participative approach to governance; and
Full financial and program accountability to membership and to funding agencies.
The members of Brain Injury Australia are:
BIA is managed by a Board and Executive Committee. The Executive Officer is Nick Rushworth.
Falls-related Traumatic Brain Injury: A Policy Position
Brain Injury Australia's 2008-09 policy paper on falls-related Traumatic Brain Injury, prepared for the Australian Government's Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA)
Download the paper. [Adobe Acrobat PDF - 338.32 KB]
"And the biggest cause of all traumatic brain injuries is...."
Nick Rushworth writes on falls-related Traumatic Brain Injury for "Synapse" March 2009
Download the article [Adobe Acrobat PDF - 401.61 KB].
The Complexity of Causality: The View from Here
Executive Officer Nick Rushworth writes for a special Homelessness White Paper edition of "Parity"
Download the article [Adobe Acrobat PDF - 2.13 MB].
More Articles...
Page 17 of 18
