Children tend to sustain injuries that produce diffuse edema, rather than those that cause focal space-occupying lesions. Focal lesions impair select skills, but diffuse injuries impact development by reducing the potential to acquire new skills. Following TBI, children must not only meet the challenges of recovery but also the ongoing challenges of maturation. The overall effect of early TBI is a reduced capacity for new skill acquisition, a finding with life-long ramifications for pediatric patients.
Demonstrating the fact that children do not "outgrow" their deficits is the data on moderate/severe TBI patients followed to adulthood:
|
The younger the age at injury, the less the likelihood of employment as an adult. Severe TBI patients, in particular, are more likely to leave school early, experience social isolation and psychiatric disturbances and to have difficulty finding paid employment.
Several stages of pediatric rehabilitation have been described. The goals of acute rehab center on the child's ability to perform age-appropriate self-care and activities of daily living.
"Outcome" Pages:
Previous
1
2
3
4
5
6
Next