Sometimes, the brain stem is severely damaged and patients cannot move anything except their eyes. Doctors call this condition locked-in syndrome. When a patient has locked-in syndrome, they possess normal intelligence, reasoning skills, and can hear everything going on around them. They just cannot communicate. There is no treatment for locked-in syndrome, and most people do not regain movement, although some have. Instead, supportive care is the best option for these patients. There are also computer programs that track eye movement and help the person speak artificially.
Not all brain stem injuries lead to coma or paralysis. Instead, some can cause swallowing problems, such as dysphagia. While the brain stem is not the only part of the brain in charge of swallowing, it plays a significant role in automatic swallowing and the gag reflex. This means that people with brain stem injuries are at a greater risk of choking on their own saliva. Fortunately, you can treat most swallowing problems with swallowing exercises for dysphagia. A speech therapist is the most qualified professional to help you overcome dysphagia.
The medulla controls your breathing by sensing the level of carbon dioxide CO 2 in the blood and adjusting your respiratory rate in response. However, a damaged medulla cannot detect how much CO 2 is in the blood. The most common respiratory problems after brain stem damage include:. If this bridge is broken, then the body cannot receive messages from the brain. As a result, you can experience numbness and muscle weakness.
To treat brain stem damage, you must address the symptoms. Because of neuroplasticity, your brain can form new neural pathways. These pathways allow undamaged portions of the brain to take over functions controlled by damaged ones. It does this in response to repetition.
Therefore, the more you practice an action, the more you will reinforce those neural pathways. And the stronger those pathways are, the easier the activity will become. This principle applies to every type of brain damage, even brain stem damage. There are several therapies you can take part in to engage neuroplasticity and recover function. We will discuss the most important ones in the sections below:. After a brain stem injury, the connection between the brain and muscles can become damaged or destroyed.
The more you activate your muscles through physical therapy, the more skills you can hope to recover. While physical therapy is concerned with teaching you how to rebuild your physical strength, occupational therapy OT looks at the specific skills you need to regain independence. During an OT session, you will practice many important activities to improve your independence after brain stem damage.
Some areas of your life an occupational therapist can help you with include:. To help you regain these skills, an occupational therapist will teach you both restorative and compensatory strategies. Restorative techniques help you relearn how to perform an activity the way you did before your brain injury.
Compensatory tactics , on the other hand, help you find an alternative way of doing a task. Of the two techniques, restorative techniques are more permanent and functional solutions. They will say whether this will be possible, and arrange for someone to stay with the parents during the process to explain fully what is happening.
The heart will continue to beat for a period of time after brain death - this does not mean that the child is alive, or that there is any chance of recovery. A reflex movement is an involuntary or automatic action. The nerve pathway for a reflex movement passes through the spinal cord, but not the brain, instructing the muscle to contract as a response to stimulation. While these movements may be distressing it is important to realise they are not an indication that the brain is functioning.
After the tests staff caring for the child will discuss with parents what happens next and the timing of this. The legal time of death will be the time that the first tests were completed. Our clinical support services. Find out more about the Paediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit specialty , including clinic information, staff members and contact details.
There are also other specialist nurses working in the ITU who are very experienced in end of life issues and who can provide specialist support. If you would like to talk to one of the hospital chaplains or your own religious adviser, please ask your nurse to contact them for you.
Understanding brain stem death We realise this is an incredibly difficult time for family and friends, and hope that this gives some basic information and helps to answer any questions.
The child does not respond to pain when pressure is applied to certain areas of the body. The child does not breathe when taken off the ventilator. Compiled by:. These challenges can last for a long duration, even a lifetime, depending upon the severity of the injury. There may be a loss of occupation or the ability to work at all. There may be extended therapy and rehabilitation required. The person may even become dependent on others to live anything close to a normal life.
It is imperative that a person who suffered a brain stem injury from the negligence of another seek the representation of an experienced brain injury attorney. A settlement mill or general practice attorney will not suffice in these cases. The skilled brain injury attorney knows the lifetime costs that result from the injury, along with the high degree of pain and suffering, diminished quality of life including loss of consortium. The attorney will not settle the case for what may appear like a lot of money at the time but is a fraction of the value of the case.
He or she will fight aggressively for the true value of the case, even if it requires a court battle in front of a jury. The lawyer knows the awards given in past cases and will aim even higher. Sibley Dolman Gipe Accident Injury Lawyers, PA is ready to aggressively battle to win the highest award for victims of any traumatic brain injury.
They have the experience and tenacity that it takes to win. If you or a loved one were injured through the negligence or malice of another, schedule a free consultation with an experienced brain injury attorney today. You may be entitled to a substantial cash settlement for present and future medical bills, loss of income, pain and suffering.
Tap To Call: Dolman, Esq. Brent Sibley, Esq. Julia Dolman, Esq. Bryan Hannan, Esq.
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