In recent years, Alaskans have died from traumatic brain injuries at a rate that’s more than twice the national average, according to a report published last week by the state health department and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Traumatic brain injuries are defined by the CDC as an injury to the head “that affects how the brain works.” The injuries can be mild or severe, and they can cause coma or death, or significant neurological complications including seizures and dementia.
While many other rural states have higher-than-average death rates from traumatic brain injuries, or TBIs, the rate in Alaska was especially high — particularly among younger Alaskans and Alaska Native people.
Among Alaska Native people, the death rate was more than three times the national average, and the hospitalization rate was more than double what white people in Alaska experienced, according to the new report, which looked at hundreds of deaths and more than 12,000 hospital visits in the state over the last five years involving serious head injuries.
One in four deaths among Alaskans 30 years old and younger were from TBIs.
The reasons behind these troubling data points have to do with the state’s high rate of suicide — which accounts for nearly half of all TBI deaths in Alaska — plus barriers and delays in accessing specialized health care, along with the popularity of outdoor recreation activities that carry a particularly high risk of head injury.
In rural Alaska especially, the report noted challenges in accessing care. There were few brain injury specialists in remote parts of the state, and the cost of care and traveling to care were barriers to accessing treatment.
[Alaska’s drop in routine child vaccinations during the pandemic has been slow to rebound]
It was difficult to tell which direction the overall trend was headed. The rate of TBI-related deaths didn’t seem to be increasing or decreasing between 2016 and 2021, the years covered in the report’s research, Katherine Newell, an epidemiologist with the CDC based in Alaska who authored the report, said in an interview.
The rate pretty much stayed consistently high the whole time, Newell said.
She added that it was important for Alaskans to know how to mitigate the risk of a serious brain injury, and what to do if you or someone you love experiences one.
That includes knowing the signs and symptoms of a TBI. They include a wide range of physical, cognitive and behavioral responses — from headaches and nausea to changes in consciousness, dizziness or vertigo, among other indicators — that can develop immediately after the injury, or days or weeks later, Newell said.
Newell encouraged Alaskans to contact their health care providers if they experience “any kind of bump, blow or jolt to the head” to be sure no serious injury has occurred.
“It can be tempting to just try and sleep it off or see how you feel in a couple of days,” she said. “But we know that early treatment of symptoms can help people recover quicker.”
The report also encouraged other best practices to decrease TBI incidence and mortality in Alaska, including suicide and domestic violence prevention efforts; encouraging helmet-wearing when riding ATVs and snowmachines; distributing ice cleats and promoting regular exercise for elders to prevent falls; and keeping firearms locked up to prevent suicides.
“The fact that one in four deaths in Alaskans aged under 30 is a TBI-related death is a very concerning statistic, especially as so many of them are preventable,” Newell said.
Key findings from the report include:
• Between 2016 and 2021, Alaska’s TBI-related mortality rate was the highest in the nation, and more than twice the national average. Of those deaths, 43% were from suicide.
• Rural Alaskans experienced a higher rate of TBI-related mortality than urban Alaskans. That’s because of higher cost of health care, limited access to specialized care, and less ability to afford care.
• Alaska Native people experienced more than double the rate of TBI-related hospitalization compared with white people in Alaska. Alaska Native people had the highest rates of TBI mortality related to suicide and crashes of motor vehicles, including snowmachines.
• The majority of Alaskans surveyed in the report who experienced TBIs reported difficulties in accessing treatment for their injuries, including neuropsychological exams and vision assessments. They said it was hard to find and pay for appointments, and expensive to have to travel to Anchorage from rural Alaska to access care.
• One in four deaths among people in Alaska under 30 were attributable to TBIs.
• 44% of TBI-related hospitalizations were caused by unintentional falls.
• For young people ages 15-34, motor vehicle crashes were the biggest cause of TBIs.
• More than $29 million in Medicaid expenditures was spent on TBI-related injuries.
• Intentional TBIs — suicide attempts — were linked to an 800% increased risk of death.
Resources
The state’s Traumatic and Acquired Brain Injury Council is an organization that’s dedicated to supporting Alaskans who are living with a brain injury. Visit the state website to learn more about the resources they offer.
The council also has a mini grant program, which is used to provide some financial assistance — up to $2,500 — to individuals who have sustained a TBI and need help with supplies or services. The application is available online.