brain injury fatality statistics
Understanding Severe Traumatic Brain Injuries
About 1.7 million U.S. residents suffer a traumatic brain injury each year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Severe traumatic brain injuries are a contributing factor in over 30 percent of fatal accident injuries. Whether due to a car accident, workplace accident, slip and fall, or other incident, a traumatic brain injury can permanently change a person’s life – or even end it.
Severe traumatic brain injuries are generally sorted into one of two categories: closed and penetrating. Closed traumatic brain injuries cause movement of the brain inside the skull, which leads to injury. Concussions are a well-known type of closed traumatic brain injury. The second type of traumatic brain injury, penetrating injuries, are caused by an object penetrating the skull, such as a bullet or a fragment of metal or glass.