Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

A Silent Epidemic

Brain injuries can happen to anyone; more than five million people in the United States today have had a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). A TBI is an injury to the brain caused by an outside physical force that causes disability and meets all of the following: 

• Involves an open (with an obvious wound) or closed (no obvious wound) head injury. 
• Can be caused by a single injury or many small ones, such as multiple concussions. 
• Occurs with or without a loss of consciousness at the time of injury. 
• Does not include brain injuries that are present at birth or the result of a degenerative disease. 

People with a TBI may need help in performing daily activities like feeding themselves or getting dressed. However, most people do not realize how a brain injury, even from a minor blow to the head, can impact their behavior or ability to function. Brain injury affects five times more people annually than breast cancer, HIV/AIDS, spinal cord injury, and Multiple Sclerosis combined.*

In North Carolina, TBI that occurs after age 22 may meet the criteria of a developmental disability and Trillium can help you find the services you need.  Call us at 1-877-685-2415. You can also contact the Brain Injury Association of North Carolina at the numbers below.

Brain Injury Association of North Carolina Offices

Sources:
CDC Estimates of Traumatic Brain Injury-Related Disability