Epidemiology of brain injury

In the United States there are over 1 million cases of traumatic brain injury occurrences reported. Between 75-95 percent of those cases are mild TBI (traumatic brain injury) injuries. Many cases go unreported each year therefore; the number of brain injuries may be significantly higher than reported.

In the United States the causes of a TBI are varied by cause and by case numbers.
1) Brain injuries from automobile accidents are estimated at 45%.
2) Brain injuries from occupational incidents are estimated at 10%.
3) Brain injuries resulting from physical assaults are estimated at 5%.
4) Brain injuries resulting from slip and falls, especially in the senior citizen communities are estimated at 30%.
5) Brain injuries occurring from recreational activities are estimated at 10%.

Brain injuries that occur in youth are usually from motor vehicle accidents. A Traumatic brain injuries suffered in contact sports and can also have lasting and even severe consequences. Such sports as football, soccer, rugby, hockey and boxing have a high number of reported head injuries and the athletic organizations are working on better player safety equipment and better athletic training. In football alone, an estimated 10 percent of US college and 20 percent of US high school players sustain brain injuries each season. The NFL is now working on having better football player helmets created, to better absorb the shock of a player getting a head injury.

TBI is common among soldiers who have seen combat. The military conducted a survey of over 2500 Army soldiers who had been deployed to Iraq and after returning stateside months later, found that between 5% and 10% of the soldiers had suffered injuries that ranged in degrees from loss of consciousness to a loss of altered consciousness. The most common brain injuries afflicting the soldiers were from explosions, blasts, falls (personal injuries), motor vehicle incidents, fragments and shrapnel and bullet injuries.