Traumatic Brain Injury Treatment: Des Moines, Iowa
A Traumatic Brain Injury, also known as a TBI, is an injury that affects how the brain works. These injuries can range in severity from a mild concussion, to an injury to the head rendering the patient unconscious. These injuries can occur in many ways, and they fall into three categories: mild, moderate, and severe TBI’s.
MILD TBI
A mild TBI can be caused by something as small as a simple fall, sports contact or hitting your head on a steering wheel. It results in the brain moving around the cranium, or skull vault, and a transient alteration in consciousness (seeing stars, dizziness, feeling dazed and confused) for up to 24 hours or a loss of consciousness for less that 30 minutes. It usually results in some mild loss of memory, either immediate or following the accident by up to 24 hours. Mild TBI’s are still a very serious event. If you or a loved one have been diagnosed with a mild TBI, it is imperative that you get them in a hyperbaric chamber immediately. Our team at Clarity in Des Moines will take it from there.
A concussion, even a mild one, can cause brain damage and serious after effects. Mild traumatic brain injuries can become infinitely more serious if they happen over and over without medical treatment. This can lead to severe symptoms like trouble concentrating and memory loss, as well as debilitating headaches and problems with balance. As many as 50% of people diagnosed with a mild concussion will experience those symptoms for days, weeks or even years after their TBI.
MODERATE TBI
A moderate TBI involves a greater degree of force delivered to the head and brain. This amount of force is generally enough to cause bleeding in the brain. It is defined by loss of consciousness of 30 minutes to 24 hours and loss of memory for 1 to 7 days. It can be caused by the same mechanism of injury as a mild TBI, just with greater force. In the case of a more vulnerable person, like someone still recovering from a previous mild TBI or an elderly person, force may not increase but damage may.
Generally, moderate TBI patients have serious and persistent symptoms and much greater disability. This can include problems with thinking, headaches, speech, fatigue and emotional outbursts.
SEVERE TBI
A severe TBI involves the greatest force, like blunt force trauma, shrapnel or an open skull fracture. These may be caused by a rollover in a vehicle without a seatbelt, a penetrating wound like a gunshot or a fall of great height. It is typically defined as a loss of consciousness for more that 24 hours, loss of memory for more than 7 days as well as other technical criteria.
These are the patients that typically end up in comas or on ventilators in ICU’s with prolonged recovery times and account for most deaths associated with traumatic brain injury. Almost always we see these patients suffering from long term complications and never return to their previous level of function. The large majority of these patients are left unable to work, and generally have a greatly reduced quality of life.
HYPERBARIC OXYGEN TREATMENT
FOR TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY (TBI)
- Dr. Harch, leading researcher in HBOT medicine.
HBOT, Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment, has been proven in multiple studies to reduce the rate of mortality in acute severe TBI patients by as much as 60%. In medicine, it is extremely difficult to find a treatment with an efficacy rate even remotely close to that.
Unfortunately, due to medical politics and the insurance world, many patients do not have access to hyperbaric medicine near me. Most patients who suffer a severe TBI, if they survive, have to wait until they are discharged from acute care in the hospital to obtain HBOT in Des Moines. In the initial acute phase, HBOT in Ankney can be a miracle; but even in the sub acute phase, hyperbaric oxygen therapy can be life changing.
The best example to share is from a man named Curt Allen, a 19 year old male who suffered a TBI and was treated by Dr. Harch four months following his traumatic brain injury. In chronic severe TBI, HBOT near me can be extremely helpful. Chronic severe TBI patients were among the first who were treated in the early days of hyperbaric research. They started to experience changes and significant recovery years after they had stopped making any improvements with traditional therapies.
This treatment is revolutionary in its approach. It treats the underlying brain wounds and stimulates the regrowth of blood vessels and brain tissue. HBOT in Des Moines brings new life to patients who have lost theirs. It is HOPE for the HOPELESS.
The above image is a series of SPECT scans on the brain of a retired service member. The red illustrates new blood flow, which is extremely positive, and rarely seen outside of HBOT therapy.
BENEFITS OF HBOT ON
TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY (TBI)
Many patients who receive HBOT treatment in Des Moines can experience the positive change with just one session. Patients who have suffered from the symptoms of a TBI for many years have been able to find relief with use of hyperbarics near me. Patients with mild TBIs have shown marked improvement and, at times, near complete relief of symptoms in 40 or fewer treatments. This can include relief of headaches, chronic pain, regaining lost speech skills, and emotional stability; plus, improvements on patient’s quality of life. The benefits of HBOT in Des Moines for traumatic brain injuries are seemingly inestimable, more and more patients are experiencing symptom improvement and relief.
