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SC🔸Posturing After Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)🔸
It's crazy how you can see a brain injury happen in real time if you know what to look for...😱
Now I'm not necessarily talking about the moment someone hits their head. A person can hit their head and have absolutely no brain trauma. I'm talking about something called "posturing". 🤸♂️
Posturing is when a person assumes an automatic involuntary movement after a TBI occurs. This posturing includes an increased ridigity and tone and thus will be notable in situations where a person should appear to be limp but is not.
🛑If you see someone making any sort of unusual posture after a hit to the head call 911 IMMEDIATELY and do not move them 🛑
Posturing can take many forms including the "fencing posture" otherwise known as Asymetrical Tonic Neck Reflex (ATNR), deceribate posturing, and decorticate posturing. Whew...that's some intense vocabulary. 🤓
🔸ATNR looks like someone is fencing. One arm is flexed while the other is extended. It's actually a primitive reflex we do as a baby. We eventually grow out of this but we can reactivate it with a head injury. If you see this type of posturing then the brainstem may be involved. 🤺
In the first clip we can see a decent demonstration of ATNR as the person lays in a fencing posture.
🔸Decorticate posturing is observed when the arms flex inward towards the chest. Think of the position you make when cozying up with a warm blanket. This type of posturing usually indicates damage to the cerebral hemispheres.
The second clip shows a very good example of decorticate posturing with the snowboarder almost "hugging" himself mid air although he is clearly unconscious.
🔸Deceribate posturing is when the limbs extend aggressively. The arms are usually at the sides. This also signifies a potential brainstem injury.
The football clip shows deceribate posturing and how intense the ridgity can be even while the person is completely unconscious.
Although all types of posturing indicate brain injury, ATNR and deceribate posturing generally indicate more severe brain injury than decorticate. Either way, call EMS ASAP! 🧠🚑
Happy falling! 🤙
@science_of_falling
