A recent article on CNN.com, Severe traumatic brain injury affects development in young children, highlights an important aspect of brain injury recovery. While a child who suffered a traumatic brain injury may not present immediate physical injuries, the long-term affects a TBI can have on a child’s cognitive development and long-term intellectual ability as they get older could be devastating.
The article discusses a study which compared the social, intellectual, and behavioral functions of 53 children who had experienced a traumatic brain injury before the age of three. According to the study, while a severe TBI was associated with lowered intellectual function, the socioeconomic status of the child’s family may be a more powerful predictor of the child’s intellectual development. They cannot fully explain why, but they suggest lower socioeconomic status, high parental stress and low parental involvement has an effect on a child’s recovery.