• Posted January 14, 2025

Men Are 3 Times As Likely to Die from Traumatic Brain Injury Compared to Women

Men are more than three times as likely to die from a traumatic brain injury compared to women, a new study says.

About 30 brain injury-related deaths occurred for every 100,000 U.S. men in 2021, while only 9 such deaths occurred among women at that rate, researchers found in a new study published Jan. 9 in the journal Brain Injury.

Firearm-related suicide, unintentional falls, and car crashes were the most common causes of brain injury-related deaths, results show.

“In addition to men, older adults are especially at risk, with unintentional falls being a major cause of TBI-related death,” lead researcher Alexis Peterson, an epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in a news release.

Traumatic brain injuries are associated with about a quarter of all injury-related deaths, researchers said in background notes.

The risk to brain health posed by repeated sports concussions put a public spotlight on TBIs, but fatal TBIs most often occur among average folks.

TBIs result from a bump, blow or jolt to the head that disrupts normal brain function, whether by accident, a self-inflicted injury, or an assault by another person, researchers said. TBIs also can result from being hit by something that penetrates the skull.

For the study, researchers examined data from the National Vital Statistics System, which tracks U.S. deaths and the causes of those deaths.

More than 69,400 TBI-related deaths occurred in the U.S. in 2021, an average of 190 a day, researchers found.

That translates to about 19 cases for every 100,000 people, and represents a nearly 9% increase from 2020.

Results from the study also show that elderly people 75 and older had the highest rates of TBI-related deaths, with more than 86 deaths for every 100,000. These were mainly caused by unintentional falls.

American Indian/Alaska Native people had the highest death rate compared to other racial and ethnic groups, at more than 31 per 100,000.

More than 37,600 TBI-related deaths resulted from unintentional injuries like vehicle crashes, falls, and being accidentally struck by an object.

About 23,600 TBI-related deaths were suicides, with nearly 98% caused by firearms, researchers found. Murder represented another 7,200 deaths from traumatic brain injury.

Children 17 and younger accounted for only about 4% of TBI-related deaths.

“By assessing patients who may be at higher risk for TBI, especially due to falls or mental health challenges, healthcare providers can make timely referrals and recommend culturally tailored interventions to prevent further injury or death,” Peterson said.

Public health efforts should focus on the main causes of TBI deaths – preventing falls in older people, suicide prevention for people in mental health crises, and traffic safety among them, researchers concluded.

If you or someone you know is suicidal, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988.

More information

The Cleveland Clinic has more about traumatic brain injury.

SOURCE: Taylor & Francis Group, news release, Jan. 9, 2024