A traumatic brain injury (TBI) can happen to anyone, anywhere, anytime 

• Anyone can be impacted by a TBI: car accident victims, athletes, domestic abuse victims, children, and soldiers. Young males between the ages of 15 and 24 have the highest rate of injury[1].
• Auto accidents cause 50 percent of all brain injuries; falls account for 28 percent; assaults and violent acts 7 percent; and 15 percent other causes[2].
• More than one million children sustain a traumatic brain injury each year. In the U.S., traumatic brain injuries are the leading cause of death and disability for children and adolescents[3].

Some Statistics

• Every 21 seconds, one person in the U.S. sustains a traumatic brain injury[4].
• 1.7 million Americans sustain a traumatic brain injury each year[5]. Of those affected, 80,000 experience the onset of long-term disability[6],[7].
• Between 2002-2006, U.S. TBI rates were highest in children aged 0 to 4 years, in adolescents aged 15 to 19 years, and in adults aged 65 years and older[8].
• TBI rates are higher for males than females across every age group in the U.S.[9]
• 5.3 million Americans – approximately two percent of the population – are living with a disability from a TBI[10].
• The total direct and indirect cost of TBI exceeds more than $76.5 billion per year in the U.S.[11]
• Incidence of TBI in other industrialized countries is comparable to incidence in the U.S., approximately 150 to 300+ incidents per 100,000 people[12], [13].

Living with TBI

• Once a TBI occurs, medical treatment focuses on preventing further injury and promoting rehabilitation[14].
• TBI can have a debilitating impact on a person’s life, possibly necessitating daily living assistance[15].
• Long-term effects of TBI include functional changes that affect thinking, sensation, language and/or emotion, as well as physical changes that affect overall mobility and motor skills[16].
• TBI can cause epilepsy and increase the risk for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other brain disorders[17].