The link between traumatic brain injuries and Alzheimer’s

Being involved in a car crash or other serious accident can be a life–altering experience. Severe injuries like traumatic brain injuries are not easy to recover from, and victims in Delaware often require ongoing and even lifelong care. Recent research even shows that people with TBIs may be at a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease in the future. 

There are millions of TBIs every year 

According to experts, TBIs affect approximately 1.7 million people in America each and every year. Although TBIs can be mild, they often cause changes in brain structure. These changes often lead to: 

• Cognitive problems 
• Memory deficits 
• Social function impairments 

Patients with Alzheimer’s experience many of these same issues, and researchers wanted to find a more definitive link between the disease and TBIs. For their study, they examined people who had Alzheimer’s, victims of TBIs and otherwise healthy patients. Researchers then performed MRI scans on the participants’ brains, and found that those with both Alzheimer’s and TBIs had significantly less cortical thickness, which helps show brain age. Researchers concluded that a history of a TBI can predict the magnitude of an Alzheimer’s patient’s brain degradation. 

Traumatic brain injuries can range from mild to severe, but this does not change the fact that victims often suffer at least some type of irreversible damage. When this trauma is the result of another person’s negligence or reckless behavior, it can be helpful to seek compensation for one’s injuries. In Delaware, this is often best accomplished through the careful actions of a personal injury lawsuit.