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Injury and Violence Prevention News
| 1. |
Groundbreaking TBI report makes the news |
| 2. |
Free CDC Tool Kit on Concussion for High School Coaches |
| 3. |
October observances: Halloween Safety, Domestic Violence Awareness and Disability Employment Awareness |
1. Groundbreaking TBI report makes the news
Emergency Department-Treated Traumatic Brain Injury, Minnesota 1998-2003, is the newest data book from the MDH Injury and Violence Prevention Unit
A related feature story in the October 8, 2005 Minneapolis Star Tribune interviewed MDH staff as well as people who had sustained traumatic brain injuries (TBI). Other media also covered the data report.
This marks the first time MDH has analyzed data on TBI treated and released from emergency departments (ED). Minnesota and South Carolina are the only state health departments funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to conduct surveillance on ED-treated TBI. An estimated 80 percent of all TBIs are treated in the ED setting, and it is believed that the majority are mild TBI cases. Mild TBI often goes unrecognized but can cause lasting disabling conditions.
TBI, or damage to the brain caused by external injury, may result in temporary or permanent cognitive, physical, behavioral or emotional changes. MDH found that, for each of the six years studied, at least 6,500 Minnesotans were treated for a TBI in an ED. The peak age groups were adolescents and young adults, for whom the leading cause was sports and recreation activities. Falls were the leading cause both for young children and older adults. According to Minnesota Commissioner of Health Dianne Mandernach, “This report is another step toward understanding the full spectrum of TBI in Minnesota.”
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2. Free CDC Tool Kit on Concussion for High School Coaches
Concussions can happen to any athlete — male or female — in any sport. Concussions are a type of TBI caused by a blow or jolt to the head that can range from mild to severe and can disrupt the way the brain normally works. More than 300,000 people sustain sports- and recreation-related TBIs every year in this country. Coaches, athletic directors and trainers play a key role in helping to prevent concussion and in managing it properly if it occurs.
CDC, with the support of partners and experts in the field, has developed a free online tool kit for coaches titled Heads Up: Concussion in High School Sports. It contains practical, easy-to-use information including a video and DVD featuring a young athlete disabled by concussion, a wallet card and clip board sticker for coaches, posters, fact sheets for parents and athletes in English and Spanish, and a CD-ROM with downloadable kit materials and additional concussion-related resources. The tool kit may also be ordered online.
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3. October observances: Halloween Safety, Domestic Violence Awareness and Disability Employment Awareness
Health promotion opportunities are available for:
Halloween Safety Month
Sponsored by Prevent Blindness America
Domestic Violence Awareness Month
Sponsored by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence
Disability Employment Awareness Month
Sponsored by the Office of Disability Employment Policy
