Questions posted in the Neurology and Neurosurgery Forum have been answered by doctors from The Cleveland Clinic Foundation.

Question Title: traumatic brain injury question

Forum: Neurology Forum
Topic: Traumatic Brain Injury

Re: traumatic brain injury question

Re: traumatic brain injury question

Posted by ccf neuro M.D. on April 16, 1997 at 15:22:11:

In Reply to: traumatic brain injury question posted by Robert Wells on April 09, 1997 at 20:13:08:

:
I had a severe head injury, (tbi) in 1987. I was seventeen year's old at the time. It is my understanding that my
"killed" (lack of oxygen to brain) brain cells are unable to rejuvinate. I can accept this, and I understand why this
is. Prior to my accident, I had an average/to above average intelligence. It is solely due to this fact that I have
recovered as much as I have, I believe. Now that I am 10 year's post TBI, I can probably forget ever regaining my
long ago learned skill's. However, I would like to know if it would be possible to actually "learn" through
repitition and study, new information. I don't expect to receive an affirmative answer to this question, I
understand that the study of the human brain is still in its infancy. This is just the question that constantly,
without interruption, plays throughout my mind every day, day after day.

Improvement in neurologic function after head trauma can continue as far as several years out from the time of injury in exceptional cases. Presumably you have had CT scans etc. to rule out hydrocephalus, which is a delayed, treatable cause of cognitive impairment that sometimes complicates such severe injuries. Learning is possible provided you have enough living brain cells to generate and store new memories, although the parts of the brain that process memory are some of the most sensitive of all to oxygen deprivation, and memory and learning difficulties are the rule for persons survivng such injuries. Through repetition, it is conceivable you could learn new things, although, as I'm sure you've already discovered, doing so will usually require much more effort and repetition than before the injury.



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