How childhood traumatic brain injuries can affect attention

Children often suffer minor injuries while playing due to minor slips and falls. However, serious injuries, including traumatic brain injuries, can adversely affect their entire lives. One of the most common problems that brain injury victims, including children who have suffered from traumatic brain injuries, face is the lack of attention and concentration problems. While the studies on adults suffering from attention problems due to brain injuries have been widespread and well researched time over time, new case studies have shown that children have also shown delayed responses and lack of attention due to traumatic brain injuries.

A recent study was conducted to assess the effect that pediatric traumatic brain injuries had on attention as opposed to injuries to any other body part. The study found that parents as well as teachers of the students stated that there were higher levels of attention problems and anxiety recorded for kids with brain injuries even 18 months after the injury. In fact, researchers also discovered that brain injury victims also displayed external problems like aggressive behavior.

They also found that children who had suffered brain injuries had also lost consciousness and had reported post-traumatic amnesia after their injuries. Even kids who suffered only mild brain injuries had a higher risk of suffering headaches, seizures or nausea. These children also registered a lower IQ and displayed delayed attention spans.

With such potential lifelong diseases and disadvantages, many children have been scarred for life because of brain injuries. In some cases, these injuries may have been caused by a car accident or another type of personal injury due to the wrongful acts of another. Many parents choose to get more information in order to fully explore their legal options.

Source: Reuters.com, “Pediatric brain injury may lead to attention problems,” Kathryn Doyle, Aug. 3, 2015