Syracuse (WSYR-TV) -- Traumatic brain injury accounts for almost half a million visits to the emergency room each year by children 14 and younger.
A new study in the
Journal of Pediatric Psychology followed 40 children between the ages of 2 and 7, each of whom had suffered a severe brain injury.
Researchers found they had persistent intellectual deficits even 10 years later, which conflicts with conventional medical opinion that children can overcome even serious damage because their brains are still developing.
Most kids with mild traumatic brain injury recover completely, but the prognosis for those with more serious injury is less predictable. Those with access to rehab did better than kids who did not.
