- Every 21 seconds* someone in the United States incurs a brain injury.
- Every 16 seconds someone in the world sustains a brain injury.
- In the USA, approximately 90,000 people experience a life-long debilitating loss of function due to a traumatic brain injury each year.
- Most frequent causes of brain injuries are vehicular crashes, falls, sports and recreational injuries and assault.
- Brain injury is the most frequent cause of death among young people.
- Annually, 30,000 children become permanently disabled, 150,000 are hospitalized and 7,000 deaths occur due to brain injury in the United States.
- Many people are not aware that brain damage can occur after a near drowning, or during a medical emergency.
- Currently, up to fifty percent of the American public is unaware that shaking a baby is dangerous.
- An estimated 3,000 children are diagnosed with the traumatic brain injury known as shaken baby syndrome (SBS).
- The only defense against brain injury is prevention education.
* Previous statistic of 15 seconds was upgraded due to the increased use of seat belts and other safety devices.
updated 10/16/01
