| Depictions of head-injury patients in movies and | | | | commonly, a person may not remember skills he or |
| television almost always show the patient | | | | she had before the TBI. |
| experiencing some type of amnesia, or memory loss. | | | | Brain Damage and Anteretrograde Amnesia |
| Indeed, memory loss is the most common cognitive | | | | A patient with TBI may also develop anteretrograde |
| side effect of a severe traumatic brain injury. In | | | | amnesia -- an inability to form memories of events |
| patients with a milder TBI, memory loss is still one of | | | | that happened after the injury. The reason for this is |
| the most common symptoms. And the more severe | | | | not well understood, but an October 2006 study by |
| the patient's memory loss is, the more severe the | | | | researchers at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia |
| brain damage is likely to be. | | | | found that TBIs reduce the levels of a protein in the |
| Temporary Memory Loss and TBI | | | | brain that helps it balance its activity. Without enough |
| Some traumatic brain injury-related amnesia is | | | | of that protein, the brain can "overload", the |
| temporary; such patients are usually unable to recall | | | | researchers said, interfering with memory formation, |
| what happened directly before, during and after their | | | | particularly the ability to learn new things. |
| accidents. This is often caused by edema, or a | | | | Treatment Options for Traumatic Brain Injury |
| swelling of the brain in response to the damage it | | | | Patients with Amnesia |
| sustained. Because the brain is pressed against the | | | | There is no treatment for memory loss caused by a |
| skull, parts that were not injured are still not able to | | | | traumatic brain injury; if the memory does not come |
| work. As the swelling goes down, the patient's | | | | back on its own, it is gone forever. However, a |
| memory returns, often slowly over a period of | | | | September 2006 study published in Neurology, the |
| weeks, months or even years. Temporary memory | | | | scientific journal of the American Academy of |
| loss may also be an emotional response to the stress | | | | Neurology, showed promising results in TBI patients |
| of the event that caused the TBI. | | | | with anteretrograde memory loss who took the drug |
| Other, less common, types of memory loss | | | | rivastigmine. The drug, which is sold to Alzheimer's |
| stemming from traumatic brain injury are fixed. These | | | | disease patients under the brand name Exelon, helped |
| result from damage to the nerves and axons | | | | patients with moderate to severe memory loss score |
| (connections between nerves) of the brain itself. | | | | better on memory tests than another group of |
| Because the brain cannot heal itself like an arm or a | | | | patients that took placebos. The results were not as |
| leg, any function that is damaged during a TBI is | | | | good for patients who had only mild memory loss. If |
| permanently impaired unless the brain can learn to | | | | you suffer from traumatic brain injury-related |
| perform that function differently. Fixed amnesia may | | | | memory problems, you may wish to contact an |
| include inability to remember events before the | | | | experienced TBI attorney to discuss your options, |
| injury, or loss of memory of the meanings of certain | | | | which may include filing a brain injury lawsuit in order |
| things, such as words or smells or objects. Less | | | | to gain compensation for your medical costs. |