If you suffer a traumatic brain injury on the job, the amount of healing you experience will be unique to your case. It depends on the area of the brain that was injured, how severe that injury is, what type of medical care you received and a variety of other factors.
It is worth noting, however, that medical experts at Johns Hopkins report that damaged and destroyed brain cells generally cannot regenerate.
In other areas of the body, cellular regeneration is a common healing tactic. Red blood cells are created in the bone marrow, for example, and can replace blood that was lost. But if neurons are lost, it may be impossible for the brain to replace them at all.
How does healing occur?
There are still a few ways for the brain to heal after a TBI. In some cases, the brain seeks new neural pathways and reroutes information. This can help someone recover skills that they lost after a TBI, and some of their symptoms may fade.
Similarly, other parts of the brain may be able to take over and supplement the injured areas. This is especially true for younger individuals who suffer a TBI, as they have a greater level of neural plasticity.
Therefore, if you suffer a TBI on the job, it is very important to work with your medical team to get a prognosis for what your future recovery looks like. This can be important when considering the type of workers’ comp benefits you need, how long your condition is expected to last and whether or not you will be able to return to work again.