Brain Injury and Brain Function
The human brain is responsible for almost all of the bodies' functions:
- Speech
- Movement
- Sight
- Hearing
- Smell
- Taste
- Pain
- Temperature
|
- Pressure
- Memory
- Will
- Behaviour
- Emotions
- Reasoning
- Intelligence
- Judgement
| are some examples of what the brain controls.
The brain is best described as something like a blancmange in consistency. This is internally housed and protected by the skull. The brain is packed in quite tightly inside the skull, ensuring that there is little room for movement. The brain passes messages within itself by means of trillions of neurones. When the brain is injured it is these message pathways which are inhibited or damaged causing problems to some or all of the functions mentioned above.
The damage to the brain can separated into two parts:
Primary brain damage
- Diffuse axonal injury, whereby at the moment of impact the brain may tear or rip causing the microscopic connection pathways to become affected.
- Bruising, where the brain is crushed against the hard and bony ridges inside the skull.
- Primary bleeding and clots, in this instance an artery or blood vessel is damaged causing bleeding and/or clots form causing pressure and constricting the brain.
Secondary brain damage
- Brain swelling, reducing the flow of blood and oxygen to the brain cells.
- Breathing Problems (anoxia) causes reduction in oxygen supply to the brain if other body parts central to the breathing process is injured i.e. heart and lungs.
- Secondary bleed. This situation a slow bleed may only be detected later. Something like a slow puncture in a tyre. These are called subdural, extradural or intracerebral haematoma.
- Infections. If the skull is penetrated, germs may enter and cause infection.
Find out what the effects of brain injury are.
|
