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 Current Activities
Outcomes of TBI
Linking Survivors to Services
Expanding the knowledge base
Brochure for People with TBI
References
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Disability Outcomes and Prevention


Disability Facts

  • An estimated 34 to 43 million people in the United States have chronic disabilities.
  • Traffic crashes, violence, and falls are the leading causes of traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries, which are two of the most severe disabling injury conditions.
  • Rehabilitation services are not available consistently throughout the U.S., and they are not financially accessible to everyone.

To help learn more about disability outcomes, CDC's Injury Center is working with other organizations to find answers to these and other questions about traumatic brain injury (TBI):

  • How many people sustain traumatic brain injury each year?
  • What happens to traumatic brain injury survivors?
  • Are less severe brain injuries being missed?

Current estimates suggest that each year

  • 50,000 Americans die with traumatic brain injury.1
  • 230,000 Americans are hospitalized and survive these injuries.1
  • Nearly 1,000,000 seek emergency care for a TBI.1
  • 80,000 to 90,000 people sustain TBI resulting in permanent disability.1
  • $37 billion in direct and indirect costs are associated with TBI.2

We need better and more complete information on the incidence and impact of TBI.

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Outcomes of TBI 

Outcomes of TBI: The Colorado Traumatic Brain Injury Registry & Follow-up System

In 1995, CDC funded an extensive follow-up study in Colorado to describe TBI-related disability, use of services and other outcomes. Preliminary findings from the study suggest that, one-year after injury, among TBI survivors aged 16 years or older,

  • Approximately 30 percent of those hospitalized with TBI report some level of disability
  • Only half of those previously employed were still working
  • Only 12 percent of those in school at the time of injury remained in school

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Linking Brain Injury Survivors to Services 

Colorado State University and the University of South Carolina are researching ways to link people with TBI to information that can help them get the services they need. Preliminary findings released in 2000 indicate that 1 in 3 people with reported disability received no services after discharge  from the hospital. The findings of these projects will shape recommendations for state policies to improve access to available services.

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Expanding the Knowledge Base

The topic areas for research proposals vary. For example, in the past the emphasis was on proposals for community-based research to prevent the occurrence and reduce the severity of disability or other adverse outcomes among people with TBI or SCI.

Examples of  TBI-related extramural research projects that have been funded at some point nclude:

  • Preventing Alcohol Abuse After TBI
  • Case Management for TBI Survivors with Alcohol Problems
  • Depression After Mild to Moderate TBI
  • Youth Prevention Programs for TBI and SCI

Further information about TBI-related extramural research opportunities can be obtained from the Research Grants and Funding Opportunities page on the NCIPC website.

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Brochure for People with Mild to Moderate TBI 

The Division of Injury and Disability Outcomes and Programs of CDC's Injury Center has coordinated the development of an informational brochure, Facts about Concussion and Brain Injury, for people with mild to moderate traumatic brain injury. The brochure, which includes information on potential symptoms of brain injury and resources for help, was designed with input from people with brain injury and their families, health care professionals, and the Brain Injury Association. Space on the brochure is reserved so that individual agencies can add information on local resources. Copies of the brochure will soon be available for distribution through emergency departments, physicians' offices, and other settings nationwide. The brochure is also available on the web.

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References

1. Traumatic Brain Injury in the United States: A Report to Congress. Atlanta: Centers for Disease Control, 1998.

2. Max W, MacKenzie EJ, Rice DP. Head injuries: costs and consequences. J Head Trauma Rehabil 1991;6:76-91.

3. Thurman DJ, Sniezek JE, Johnson D, et al. Guidelines for Surveillance of Central Nervous System Injury. Atlanta: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1995.

 
Selected Traumatic Brain Injury References

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Traumatic Brain Injury--Colorado, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Utah, 1990-93. MMWR 1997; 46(1):8-11.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Sports-related recurrent brain injuries--United States. MMWR, 1997; 46(10):224-227.

Sosin DM, Sniezek JE, Waxweiler RJ. Trends in death associated with traumatic brain injury, 1979 through 1992. JAMA 1995;273:1778B80.

Sosin DM, Sachs JJ, Smith SM. Head injury-associated deaths in the United States from 1979B1986. JAMA 1989;262:2251B5.

Sosin DM, Nelson DE, Sacks JJ. Head injury deaths: the enormity of firearms. JAMA 1992;268:791 (letter).

Sosin DM, Sniezek JE, Thurman DJ. Incidence of mild and moderate brain injury in the United States, 1991. Brain Injury 1996;10:47B54.

Thurman DJ, Branche CM, Sniezek JE. The epidemiology of sports-related traumatic brain injuries in the United States: recent developments. J Head Trauma Rehab 1998; 13(2):1-8.

Thurman DJ, Sniezek JE, Johnson D, et al. Guidelines for Surveillance of Central Nervous System Injury. Atlanta: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1995.

Gabella B, Hoffman RE, Marine WW, Stallones L. Urban and rural brain injuries in Colorado. Ann Epidemiol 1997;7:207-212.

Thurman DJ, Jeppson L, Burnett CL, Beaudoin DE, Rheinberger MM, Sniezek JE. Surveillance of traumatic brain injuries in Utah. Western J Med 1996;164:192-196.

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Contact
Information

National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
Mailstop K41
4770 Buford Highway NE
Atlanta, GA 30341-3724

Phone: 770.488.4031
Fax: 770.488.4338
Email: OHCINFO@cdc.gov


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This page last reviewed 08/05/04.

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