Brain Injury

Brain injury or brain damage is the pathological condition wherein brain cells are destroyed. This degeneration of brain cells may result from a variety of situations or conditions, diseases and injuries—usually to the head. These damages to the brain could be caused by a prolonged shortage of oxygen supplied to the brain, certain infections, trauma and neurological disorders.

Although it is difficult to assess or gauge the actual damage done to a person’s life, assessing the extent of the brain damage could be done by letting the patient undergo a neurological examination. Neuroimaging and neuropsychological assessments are also done in order to further assess the extent of brain cell degeneration. However, in the cases of children or infants who are suffering from brain damage, it is more difficult for specialists to gauge the extent and effects of the damage. This is because different areas of the brain mature at different stages. For example, it would be impossible to know if the area responsible for speech has been damaged until the infant reaches the speaking age.

The extent of the brain injury and the location of the damaged tissues play an important role in knowing what effects and problems the patient may have. For example, damage to the brain stem can very much likely lead to paralysis or a permanent vegetative state. Other effects of brain injury are delusions or hallucinations, speech problems such as slurring, decreased mobility, neurocognitive deficits, amnesia, coma and even death.

Impairment or disability that is caused by brain injury may be treated differently depending on the severity of brain cell degeneration. These treatments include medication, surgery, neuropsychological rehabilitation and physical implants. In severe cases, there are also methods such as deep brain stimulation. Rehabilitation of brain-damaged patients is spearheaded by specialists in this area such as neurosurgeons, neurologists and neuropsychologists. These experts are capable of understanding the effects of brain injury, assessing brain damage and creating the appropriate rehabilitation program for each patient. In such programs, professionals help patients regain complete body functions and relearn essential skills.

Brain Injury provides detailed information on Brain Injury, Anoxic Brain Injury, Traumatic Brain Injury, Hypoxic Brain Injury and more. Brain Injury is affiliated with Diabetic Neuropathy. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Max_Bellamy

Hypoxic Brain Injury

Hypoxic brain injury or cerebral hypoxia is a condition that refers to a severe decrease of oxygen supplied to the brain, even though there is sufficient blood flow. This condition may be caused by a blockage in the respiratory tract or airways brought about by strangling, suffocation or choking, conditions such as head trauma, cardiac arrest, carbon monoxide poisoning and complications from surgery. In mild cases, cerebral hypoxia can lead to memory loss or temporary amnesia, poor judgment, impaired motor coordination and inattentiveness or carelessness.

It is very important for the brain to have adequate supply of oxygen. Oxygen deprivation in brain cells can lead to tragic consequences within minutes. If the lack or absence of oxygen lasts longer, the brain cannot respond to stimuli, which leads to seizures, unconsciousness, coma and brain death. When brain death happens, basic life functions such as breathing, homeostasis, blood circulation and maintenance of blood pressure, along with other cardiac functions are preserved, but then the patient would already be unresponsive and unconscious of everything.

Treatments greatly depend on the primary cause of the hypoxia, but is imperative that basic life-support systems have to be installed in order to regulate the body’s processes. For example, a ventilator is needed to secure the airway; medications to maintain blood pressure and heart rate; and other medicines to suppress seizures that can further damage brain tissues.

The recovery and rehabilitation of patients highly depend on the duration of oxygen deprivation the brain endured and on how much degeneration of brain cells occurred. Most patients who had suffered from hypoxia and recovered fully had only been unconscious for a short time. If they had been unconscious for a longer period of time, the chance of brain death or even death resulting from the episode is reasonably higher and the chance of full recovery lower.

Brain Injury provides detailed information on Brain Injury, Anoxic Brain Injury, Traumatic Brain Injury, Hypoxic Brain Injury and more. Brain Injury is affiliated with Diabetic Neuropathy. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Max_Bellamy