Interventional Drugs for TBI Rehabilitation of Cognitive Impairment: The Cholinesterase Inhibitor Rivastigmine

Traumatic Brain Injury: Prevalence, Affected Population, and Sequelae

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a noncongenital injury arising from blunt or penetrating injury to the head or from acceleration/deceleration forces. TBI is an important public health problem; an estimated of 1.5–2.0 million Americans are injured each year. TBI accounts for at least 1.4 million of the emergency room visits, close to 300,000 hospital admissions and 52,000 deaths each year. Currently, TBI is considered one of the principal causes of death and disability in active young adults ( ).

The leading causes of TBI in the general populations include motor vehicle crashes, interpersonal violence, and falls ( ). Disabilities resulting from TBI depend on injury severity, location, age, and general health of the individual, although many people who sustain even a mild TBI can experience significant and persistent physical and neuropsychiatric problems ( ). Importantly, reports indicate that between 69% and 80% of patients with TBI will experience a detrimental effect on memory and cognitive abilities ( ).

Overall, approximately three million people in the United States alone are living with disability as a result of TBI. Personal and social costs are estimated to be between 9 and 10 billion dollars per year ( ).