Can a Traumatic Head Injury Cause Me Not To Sleep?

Little is known on how one will recover or react in the future after a traumatic head injury (TBI).  Medical doctors can compare and estimate one TBI victim’s case to another; however, they honestly don’t know the future outcome for every TBI patient.  This is due to the complex nature of the brain and how each person’s body can react differently to the brain injury, new and old TBI procedures, and medications such as pain medication.  One example is that brain injuries can disrupt the body’s production of the hormone melatonin, potentially leading to sleep problems.  However, not every TBI patient will have low melatonin or have trouble sleeping.

In a new study, published May 2014 in an issue of Neurology, researchers examined 23 people who had suffered severe traumatic brain injuries and 23 healthy people who were the same age. All participants were monitored for two nights in a sleep laboratory.  Levels of melatonin rose to higher levels in the evening hours in the healthy participants, sending the usual signal that it was time to start thinking about sleeping.  Those with brain injuries only spent about 82 percent of their time in bed actually asleep, compared to 90 percent among the healthy people. Those with brain injuries also were awake more than an hour during the night after first falling asleep, compared to an average of 27 minutes among the healthy participants. TBI victims spent less time in deep sleep than the healthy participants.  The researchers even retested each participant who reported having anxiety or depression but not a TBI and the results didn’t change.

If you or a family member have been injured by a slip in fall, car accident, motorcycle accident, boating accident, truck accident, or while at work and were diagnosed with a brain injury, contact a TBI attorney immediately.  A New Mexico TBI attorney will work with you to establish a case and obtain the maximum amount of compensation for your injuries.