American experts concluded that women and men with head injuries are more at risk of developing depression than children with the same injuries. But as for children, in this area an insufficient number of studies has been conducted. This led scientists to further study the prevalence of this disease among children with head injuries, including concussion.
Using the data from the 2007 National Childhood Survey 2007, researchers identified more than 2,000 children with brain injuries. At the same time, they reflected the national level of traumatic brain injuries in children in the amount of 1.9 percent in 2007. 3112 children were also identified with a diagnosis of depression, the level of which in 2007 was 3.7 percent. Compared with other children, 15 percent with traumatic brain injuries or concussions were diagnosed with depression, which indicates an almost 5-fold increase in the diagnosis of depression.
“Given the well-known prognostic factors of depression in children, such as family structure, developmental delays and poor health, it was found that a depressive state will develop twice as fast in children with brain injuries or concussions,” said one of the study’s authors, Matthew Wiley .
According to Dr. Wiley, this large-scale study of the relationship between brain injuries and depression in adolescent children will make it possible to prevent the development of a depressive state in children who have suffered serious skull injuries.
Recall that any head injury with loss of consciousness is a reason for prolonged hospitalization in order to conduct the necessary tests and monitor the patient in order to exclude the presence of bruises and bruises. Doctors also recommend for several weeks to avoid mental and physical stress, sun exposure, etc.