How serious is a mild concussion? Even though many people believe that a concussion isn’t much more than a bump on the head, Virginia scientists have completed a new traumatic brain injury (TBI) study that shows even a mild concussion can cause significant brain abnormalities.
According to local and national news sources, the anatomy and neurology departments of the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and the Commonwealth Center for the Study of Brain Injury have published an article in the May 2012 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience that shows that even a minor head injury can cause the structural disruption of axons and disrupt neuron firings for days after the accident. What does that mean, exactly? Put simply, even a mild concussion can cause the brain to have difficulty sending signals long after the head injury takes place.
Head researcher Kimberle M. Jacobs said that she hopes that the findings will help develop a bioimaging approach to brain injuries that will allow doctors to better understand the effects of concussions and other head injuries. These findings might also help medical professionals better understand why repeated concussions over a number of years could cause damage even when no structural damages can be seen.
The study was funded in part by the National Institutes of Health.
We understand that a mild concussion can be much more than a bump on the head. If you have suffered a head injury in an accident, a Virginia head injury attorney may be able to help.