Suffering a head injury in New Jersey can be as traumatic as it is expensive. According to Harvard University, trauma to the head can result in various forms of traumatic brain injuries. These include concussions, skull fractures, acute subdural hematoma and epidural hematoma. Some brain injuries can lead to blackouts, while others may even result in coma, death or lifelong disabilities.
CNN now posits that mild traumatic brain injury may also be an underlying contributor to mental health problems, such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. In some instances, this is not necessarily related to the actual injury, but how it came about. In the case of a motor vehicle crash, for instance, the person may have difficulty sleeping and may relive the moment of impact in their thoughts.
In fact, within just six months of the original injury, 21.2% of patients who suffer from mild TBI later have issues with depression and PTSD. For perspective, compare this with the fact that when people suffer injury not involving head trauma, only 12.1% of them suffer from depression and PTSD afterward. While there are many causes of mild TBIs, motor vehicle crashes accounted for 61.8% of cases.
Finally, it is important to note that people who had a history of mental health problems before the mild TBI took place were more likely to experience PTSD and depression within three to six months of their injury. Because it is a strong indicator, this may help doctors to better provide psychiatric support for at-risk patients they treat for head trauma before it is too late.
