The Pathophysiology of Traumatic Brain Injury Assignment Paper
Consider a variety of population health problems and then select one of professional interest on which to focus for this Assignment.
Explore three data sources (data sets) presented in the Learning Resources that could aid you in describing the population and magnitude of the problem you selected. Consider the strengths and limitations of each data source. The Pathophysiology of Traumatic Brain Injury Assignment Paper
From the link below, I selected INJURY AND VIOLENCE
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (n.d.). Data.CDC.gov: Home. Links to an external site. https://data.cdc.gov/
In 3–4 pages (not including the title page and references), analyze the data sources you selected by addressing the following:
Briefly identify the population health problem you selected.
Identify each data set you selected.
Identify the variables in each data set you would need to examine the association of interest.
Assess the validity of each data set. Has it been used for prior studies/publications?
Explain the challenges you might face as a researcher in identifying a proper data set or securing permission to use it. The Pathophysiology of Traumatic Brain Injury Assignment Paper
Data Set Analysis
Injury and Violence
Injury and violence are one of the leading concerns in healthcare because of their impact on the wellness of the public. Injuries are associated with various activities, including occupational hazards, accidents on the road, among many other causes. One of the primary concerns when considering injuries is traumatic brain injury, which often causes disability and death among the victims. These injuries could be sustained in accidents or when individuals are subjected to violence. For instance, criminals could victimize individuals by harming them physically, while other contributory factors may involve domestic violence. The CDC consolidates data relating to injury and violence for the purpose of identifying the trends in this healthcare concern. Current data highlights the incidence of injury and violence, while research within the agency has also focused on comparative analysis of the data to create information facilitating clear insights of the effectiveness of the solutions that have been implemented over time. There should be a focus on collecting more data relating to injury and violence because of the negative outcomes, especially when considering disability among survivors of accidents. The Pathophysiology of Traumatic Brain Injury Assignment Paper
Data Identification
Table 1: Rates of TBI-ED visits, hospitalizations, and deaths in the United States (2001-2010.
Year | Emergency Department Visits | Hospitalizations | Deaths | Total |
2001 | 420.6 | 82.7 | 18.5 | 521 |
2002 | 433.9 | 85.6 | 18.3 | 537.2 |
2003 | 423.3 | 94.6 | 18.2 | 535.4 |
2004 | 486.3 | 97.6 | 18.1 | 601.3 |
2005 | 505 | 92.8 | 18.6 | 615.7 |
2006 | 478.9 | 98.7 | 18.2 | 595.1 |
2007 | 457.5 | 91.7 | 18.2 | 566.7 |
2008 | 616.4 | 95.5 | 17.7 | 728.9 |
2009 | 677.4 | 98 | 17.2 | 791.9 |
2010 | 715.7 | 91.7 | 17.1 | 823.7 |
The highlighted data reveals the rate of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in the emergency departments across the healthcare system from 2001 to 2010. There is a clear indication from the data that the rates of hospitalization and mortality rate associated with TBI increased steadily over the decade. The death rate in 2001 was at around 52 per 1000 victims, while it was at around 82 per 1000 victims in 2010 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2023). The number of visits to hospitals, in relation to this condition did not change significantly over the decade, which reveals that the nature of the injuries and the resultant complications exacerbated over time. Traumatic brain injury is often associated with accidents, especially when considering drivers and passengers in car accidents. This is a major concern in the American healthcare system, especially when considering that current data reveals an increase in the death rate relating to the issue. While there was a small reduction in the hospitalization rate between 2006 and 2007, the death rate remained relatively the same across the decade. The Pathophysiology of Traumatic Brain Injury Assignment Paper
However, a graphical representation of the data reveals that while the rate of hospitalization was fairly similar across the decade, there was a reduction in the death rate in the latter half of the decade. This could be influenced by the presence of improved emergency services, in terms of response time, quality of imaging and treatment, as well as the capacity to provide close monitoring and rehabilitation for the patients. This is reinforced by the fact that the graphical representation of the data indicates an increase in emergency department visits. Figure 1 highlights this information, with the comparative analysis indicating a steady increase in visits to the ED, relatively steady increase in the hospitalization rate, and a clear indication of slight reductions in death rates across the decade (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2023). The Pathophysiology of Traumatic Brain Injury Assignment Paper
Figure 1: Rates of TBI graph
Variables
The variables presented in the data set include the Emergency Department visits, the hospitalizations rate, and the death rates. The table also summarizes the totals for the respective variables for the purposes of comparison. These variables are presented in figure 1, with the specified data points in the table being the nodes that helped in structuring the graphical representation. The variables are presented in a simplified manner that is easy to understand, but it is apparent that the data was not sufficient to provide a high level of reliability in understanding the healthcare issue from the perspective of its frequency and influence on public health outcomes (Maas et al., 2022). This was mainly influenced by the small sample collected over the decade. The Pathophysiology of Traumatic Brain Injury Assignment Paper
Validity Assessment
When considering the validity of the data, it is apparent that the data was collected from credible sources. This includes the national hospital ambulatory medical care survey, which collects all the data relating to emergency visits across the United States healthcare system. This implies that the agency has access to all information relating to TBI incidences across the healthcare system. Moreover, the validity of the data was reinforced by the utilization of data sets from the national hospital discharge survey. This is a reliable source of information relating to hospitalization incidents relating to TBI (Thapa et al., 2021). Additionally, the data relied on information from the national vital statistics system mortality data. The repository held by this agency conducts surveys on the cause of death and TBI is one of the areas that are closely and accurately documented. This implies that the data is valid to be used in research and the development of inferences that could guide various entities into the development of future solutions based on its insights (Khellaf et al., 2019). However, the size of the data set is relatively low, which could be misleading because of the lack of accuracy in representing the actual nature of the incidences relating to injury and violence across the decade. The information is only reliable for the presentation of the general information relating to this issue. There is no clear indication that the data has been used in other studies before. The Pathophysiology of Traumatic Brain Injury Assignment Paper
Challenges
Researchers may require the engagement with other data sets relating to TBI incidents to clearly understand the changes in the rate of emergency department visits, hospitalization, and the death rate associated with the condition. In essence, the data is valid, but a researcher would require access to a larger dataset to make accurate inferences. This calls for a critical review of the data to be collected within the past decade, and a consolidation of the critical analysis to highlight a trend that will be instrumental in the implementation of interventions over the next decade. Injury and violence are critical healthcare challenges that are linked to a high rate of hospitalization and death; therefore, there should be an objective approach toward resolving the challenge (Giza & Hovda, 2020). Injury prevention and control should be prioritized, particularly through the elimination of the factors that lead to traumatic brain injury, which is a serious condition that could result in disability or death. The Pathophysiology of Traumatic Brain Injury Assignment Paper
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). Rate of TBI-related Emergency Department Visits, Hospitalizations, and Deaths- United States, 2001-2010. Retrieved from https://data.cdc.gov/Traumatic-Brain-Injury-/Rates-of-TBI-related-Emergency-Department-Visits-H/45um-c62r.
Giza, C. C., & Hovda, D. A. (2020). The pathophysiology of traumatic brain injury. In Traumatic brain injury in sports (pp. 45-70). Taylor & Francis.
Khellaf, A., Khan, D. Z., & Helmy, A. (2019). Recent advances in traumatic brain injury. Journal of neurology, 266, 2878-2889.
Maas, A. I., Menon, D. K., Manley, G. T., Abrams, M., Åkerlund, C., Andelic, N., … & Zemek, R. (2022). Traumatic brain injury: progress and challenges in prevention, clinical care, and research. The Lancet Neurology.
Thapa, K., Khan, H., Singh, T. G., & Kaur, A. (2021). Traumatic brain injury: mechanistic insight on pathophysiology and potential therapeutic targets. Journal of Molecular Neuroscience, 71(9), 1725-1742. The Pathophysiology of Traumatic Brain Injury Assignment Paper