Case Study of a 40 Year old male with a Traumatic Brain Injury
Author- James Chenoweth
Paramedic Student UAF 2016-2017
Abstract
The purpose of this case study is to examine the specific case study of a 40 year old male who suffered a traumatic brain injury as the result of a fall from a roof. For future reference the term "Traumatic Brain Injury" will be abbreviated here as TBI and "Intracranial Pressure" as ICP. In this study we will explore the medical findings that are common in such an injury and how they relate to the Paramedic in the field. The specificity of this case will be broken down to define relevant terminology and findings that were present to the paramedics that responded to this call. Lastly, TBI's will be explored and discussed for their relevance in the field, contributing factors and comorbidities as they relate to paramedicine.
[Case Study of a 40 Year old male with a Traumatic Brain Injury]
Pre-Hospital Care Report
The case study begins for a 911 call for a 40 year old male who was assaulted and thrown from a rooftop and landed in a stairwell below. Upon arrival, the advanced life support crew was greeted by Alaska State Troopers who mentioned that the patient had been moved from the stairwell and placed in the snow for ease of access. EMS personnel immediately began to
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It is important to note that there are currently no invasive procedures that Paramedics are trained to do in the field to reduce ICP and early recognition and prompt transport to the nearest hospital with neurological capabilities is the definitive treatment for this type of injury. In our case study, the treating medics were limited in their options for treatment, mostly due to the inability to secure the airway due to the patient locking down his jaw. However they were able to suction some of the fluid and maintain an open airway through manual manipulation and cervical spinal
Being home and at school are the primary locations for students and adolescents and where they spend the most time of their day. When a student is diagnosed with a TBI, it can dramatically affect their school performance. After a student experiences a TBI, school is one one of the many stepping stones where recovery and development is offered and can be used as an intervention. For schools to be able to offer the appropriate educational measures adjusted for the needs of the student, the appropriate support and recovery process for the student, schools having the appropriate documentation and knowledge about the student’s injury.
Awareness about traumatic brain injury has increased because of combat operations in Irag and Afghanistan and in the National Football League. The debate over the nature of traumatic brain injury is an ongoing issue. Some think of categorizing from mild to the server is the condition of TBI that can lead to a person bring over diagnosed or misdiagnosed. The other side points out that the focus should not be on diagnosis put on the recovery and treatment of the symptoms.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major health problem in industrialized societies. Associations between TBI and neuropsychiatric disorders have been recognized for many years. Impulsive aggression is one of the most socially and vocationally disruptive consequences of these neuropsychiatric disorders (Tateno, 2003).
Medical and technological advances have led to greater survival rates in individuals suffering from various illness and injury throughout history. This includes individuals who suffer traumatic and nontraumatic brain injuries. Approximately 1.5 million people in the United States sustain a brain injury each year with the survival rate of over 90 percent making brain injury the leading cause for disability in the United States. (Mysiw, Bogner, Corrigan, Fugate, Clinchot, & Kadyan 2006). Cognitive, physical, sensory and behavioral changes are widely noted in individuals in the months and years following a brain injury. However, the psychosocial, psychological and emotional effects of these injuries are less discussed and therefore these aspects can be overlooked when anticipating a course of treatment. Individuals who sustain acquired brain injuries experience significant, lasting impairment in the psychosocial, psychological and emotional aspects of their lives and better understanding of these issues can lead to better treatment and coping skills for these individuals.
Being on my school’s diving team has had its ups and downs but one the biggest setbacks I went through while on the team was my freshman year when I got a concussion. I was doing a simple reverse dive I under rotated enough that when I hit the water, it pushed my head into my knee. I am unsure whether or not I blacked out but all I remembered was climbing out of the pool dizzy and confused. I went to a doctor and found out I had a concussion. Having a concussion was a big setback in itself, but what made it the worst was that the conference meet was coming up in about a week. I had to rest for the remainder of the week and was cleared to practice again the next Monday. Because of the whole situation I felt like quitting all together. I only had three days of practice before the conference meet and had nothing prepared. I did not think it would be possible for me to practice all eleven of my dives that I needed to do at the meet in time. Then I remembered my goal for the season: to earn my varsity letter. I had not achieved my goal yet and the conference meet was my last chance to do so. I was not about to
Football players risk their lives every time they walk onto the field. Although, some players do not see the risk, because no one has informed them of the consequence. They are not aware that their next football game might be their last game or that their small headache could, in fact, be the beginning of a traumatic brain injury. The coaches are fixated on winning the game and they lose focus of their main priority, their players safety. Due to their lack of knowledge, the players do not receive proper treatment and continue to play. Acting as if nothing is wrong, they go to school and find themselves forgetting where their class is. Memory loss is one of the many symptoms associated with a traumatic brain injury, or concussion. A concussion can be caused by one traumatic impact or many minor blows to the head; also, in some cases, it can be fatal. Preventing concussions is vitally important to ensure the safety of athletes in the future.
Concussion, also known as minor head trauma or mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is the most common type of traumatic brain injury. It is typically defined as a head injury with a temporary loss of brain function. Symptoms include a variety of physical, cognitive, and emotional symptoms, which may not be recognized if subtle. A variety of signs accompany concussion including headache, feeling in a fog, and emotional changeability. In general, the signs can be categorized into physical signs (such as loss of consciousness or amnesia), behavioral changes (such as irritability), cognitive impairment (such as slowed reaction times), and sleep disturbances.[1] Fewer than 10% of sports-related concussions among children are associated with loss of consciousness.[2]
Concussions can seriously alter one’s life. Concussions are the result of moderate to severe impact to the head with another object. These impacts shake the brain, which is suspended in cerebral fluid, and cause it to scrape against the skull. Concussions can have mild to severe symptoms including insomnia, an inability to concentrate and headaches. Symptoms manifest both physically and mentally and may appear days after the initial trauma, with the possibility of lasting for months. Concussions are extremely prominent in contact sports such as football and hockey at all ages of play, professional to amateur. Multiple concussions may be accompanied by CTE, a neurodegenerative disease associated with
The article starts by an example of Matt Masterantuono has an concussion during an Ultimate Frisbee tournament in Walla Walla, Washington, which gives some background information to the readers. Then it started talk about the brain injuries or TBIs, traumatic brain injury. According to www.traumaticbraininjury.com, traumatic brain injury is a brain dysfunction caused by a force hitting the head. I learned that football players are most likely to have TBIs.
to the brain from an external force can result in Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). When the
In the United States alone, there are approximately one million head injuries reported every year; eighty five percent of these injuries are classified as mild traumatic brain injuries. Traumatic brain injuries, also known as concussions, are the leading cause of death and disability for neurological disorders before the age of fifty. Mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBI) are one of the most prevalent, and have become a major public health issue. A few of the main reasons there are so many problems with traumatic brain injuries (TBI), are lack of reporting by the patients, physician’s misdiagnosis or undiagnosed, and lack of awareness.
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is one of the leading causes of death and disability among children, adolescents, and adults (Trudel, Scherer, & Elias, 2009, p.41). There are close to 1.4 million individuals a year who are treated with a TBI. Out of this 50,000 of them die. That is 1 out of every 28 people treated for a TBI dies every year. Another 6 out of 28 people are admitted into medical facilities for longer-term care. These number do not take in account the number of people each year with TBI’s who go untreated. However, TBI’s had received little to no support publicly or policy wise until recent years. This increase in attention was due to the increase in TBI’s among military personnel returning home from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI), or intracranial injury, is a medical diagnosis which refers to closed or penetrative damage to the brain that is caused by an external source. Every year, TBIs affect approximately 150-250 people in a population of 100,000 (León-Carrión, Domínguez-Morales, Martín, & Murillo-Cabezas, 2005). The leading causes of TBI are traffic accidents, work injuries, sports injuries, and extreme violence (León-Carrión et al., 2005). TBI is most often fatal when the cause is an injury due to the use of firearms, a traffic accident, or a long fall (León-Carrión et al., 2005). However, fatality rates and rates of occurrence differ in various countries due to
Traumatic Brain Injury is otherwise known as TBI. “Traumatic brain injury, a form of acquired brain injury, occurs when sudden trauma causes damage to the brain. TBI can result when the head suddenly and violently hits an object, or when an object pierces the skull and enters brain tissue” (NINDS, 2010). There are two main types of TBI, closed head injuries such as head hitting a windshield and penetrating head injuries such as a gunshot wound. As reported by the Global Neuroscience Initiative Foundation,” The severity of traumatic brain injuries is often assessed using the Glasgow Coma Scale, with scores ranging from 3 to 15. The higher the score,
When working on an ambulance for a large ambulance service a case was given of a 27-year-old male who had been assaulted. On arrival at scene the crew were met at the entrance to a block of flats