WHAT IS A HEAD INJURY?
The term HEAD INJURY refers to an injury to the BRAIN which is usually the result of an accident, or sometimes an assault. Often the injury results froma blow to the head such as may be suffered in an automobile accident, a fall or a gunshot wound. The injury may also occur as a result of lack of oxygen (such as in drowning), or as a result of lack of blood supply to the brain (such as following a cardiac arrest). People with multiple injuries (as in serious auto accidents) often suffer brain injury by more than one of these mechanisms. The term HEAD INJURY is preferable to the term BRAIN DAMAGE because the brain has tremendous powers of recovery. Furthermore, shortly after a head injury, it is usually impossible.
