Youth sporting events offer exercise and excitement to families in West Virginia, but if a young player gets a head injury, a study suggests that the person could experience long-term effects. Scientists from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center collected data for two decades about how traumatic brain injuries impacted the lives of children.

According to their research, mild to moderate brain injuries doubled the incidence of attention problems in children. Severe head traumas increased attention difficulties in children by a factor of five. Family life appeared to play a significant role in the recovery of children. Young people with bad injuries experienced fewer problems when they lived within a secure and stable family environment. Injured children within low-income or unstable households suffered from ongoing symptoms even if their head injuries had been mild.

Among those children who displayed long-term symptoms, they most often had trouble processing information, controlling behavior and reasoning. The study indicated that an early and supportive response by family members eased symptoms. Family-guided interventions meant to treat the children showed promise for increasing the attention span of victims between the ages of 12 and 17.

A person of any age recovering from a traumatic brain injury might require ongoing rehabilitative care. In some cases, a victim might never be able to hold a job due to cognitive and memory difficulties. When a negligent party, such as a reckless driver, caused the accident that inflicted the brain damage, the injured victim may want to have the advice and counsel of an attorney when seeking appropriate compensation for the losses caused by the at-fault party.