Focal Brain Injuries

The brain is the most complex organ in our body. It serves as the command center of the human nervous system. The brain is composed of different parts and functions that are dependent upon each other. The brain consists of two distinct sides: the right and left cerebral hemispheres. The side of the brain that endures damage will impact the function on the opposite side of the body and impairs mental capabilities. Hence, any injury or damage to the brain can produce impairment on the brain functions. Brain injuries has often led to low psycho-social functioning (Pierson & Noggle, 2010) as well as a variety of emotional and behavioral symptoms (Wozniak, Krach, Ward, Mueller, Muetzel et al., 2007). The most frequent sequelae after severe brain

In patients with severe brain injury, a typical clinical picture consists of significant cognitive impairment, particularly in the domains of attention and concentration, psychomotor speed, memory, and executive function, as well as fatigue and problems with motivation. Agitation and repetitive purposeless behaviors may also be present. Lability of mood is common; patients are often described as childish or moody. One of the ways brain injuries are differentiated is under the term focal brain injury. Focal brain injuries are injuries that are concentrated in single region of the brain. Cerebral contusion and cerebral laceration are two injuries categorized under focal brain

It is similar to a brain contusion but differs as, in laceration, the pi-arachnoid membranes are torn over the site of injury. The lacerations are caused by the same thing as many brain injuries: a sharp blow to the head. Brain lacerations can sometimes happen when the brain tissue is stretched and causes bleeding into the brain tissue. Lacerations are very common in penetrating and perforating head trauma and frequently accompany skull fractured; however, they may also occur in the absence of skull fracture. Lacerations are associated with intraparenchymal bleeding, that is, bleeding into the brain tissue. Lacerations require greater physical force to occur than contusions. It can cause a decline in mental function in the long term and may also result in brain herniation, a life-threatening condition in which a part of the brain is squeezed across structures within the skull. Frequently occurring in the same areas as contusions, lacerations commonly occur in the inferior frontal lobe and the poles of the temporal lobes. Also, the corpus callosum and the brain stem are the regions where laceration occurs when associated with diffuse axonal