dpt semester 10

1. Pediatric Traumatic Brain
Injury
Dr. Tehreem Anis
DIRS, DU

2. What is Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury?
• Trauma to the head that disrupts typical brain function
• Chronic in children
• Symptoms change over time due to the child’s continuous brain development
• Injury may not be immediately apparent

3. Severity Levels

4. GCS
• Quick assessment that identifies the
severity of head injury
• The more points awarded indicate a
less severe head injury

5. Causes
• TBI is a Leading cause of death in children ages
0—4 and adolescents ages 15-19.
• Primary causes in infants, toddlers,
preschoolers
• Falls
• Assaults
• Shaken baby syndrome
• Physical abuse
• Secondary causes in infants, toddlers,
preschoolers (more common in older children)
• Motor vehicle accidents
• Bicycle accidents
• Sports injuries (ASHA, 2017)

6. Prevalence
• In the US, approx. half a million children ages 0-14 years are admitted
to emergency rooms each year due to TBI
• In the US, children ages 0-4 years had the highest estimated annual
rates of TBI related emergency room visits (1256 per 100,000)
• Boys ages 0-9 are more likely than girls
• Mild TBI or concussions are more prevalent (ASHA, 2017)

7. Symptoms - General

8. Symptoms - General

9. Symptoms – Speech and Language

11. Symptoms – Feeding and Swallowing

12. Therapy Focus

13. Therapy Approach – Family Centered Practice

15. Therapy Approach – Restorative

16. Therapy Approach - Habilitative

17. Therapy Approach - Compensatory

18. Prevention
• Campaign against child abuse and shaken impact syndrome
• Seatbelt, helmet usage
• Think first – aggressive injury prevention campaign
• Sports gears
• Protective flooring and heights of play ground
• Safe behavior around children

19. References
• Pediatric Rehabilitation – Principles
and Practice. Chapter 15
• https://www.biav.net/wp-
content/uploads/2017/06/Understandi
ng-Pediatric-Brain-Injury-Mayo.pdf