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Primary
Prevention
As part of preventive care, physicians can provide information to patients, families, and caregivers about risk behaviors and activities that increase potential for TBIs of all types. Recommendations for preventing TBIs include those listed below. (These tips also are available on the patient information sheet,
Heads Up: Preventing Brain
Injury, contained in this brain injury tool kit.)
- Wear a seat belt every time you drive or ride in a motor vehicle.
- Never drive while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
- Always buckle your child into a child safety seat, booster seat, or seat belt (depending on the child's height, weight, and age) in the car.
- Wear a helmet and make sure your children wear helmets when:
- Riding a bike, motorcycle, snow mobile, or all-terrain vehicle;
- Playing a contact sport, such as football, ice hockey, or boxing;
- Using in-line skates or riding a skateboard;
- Batting and running bases in baseball or softball;
- Riding a horse; and
- Skiing or snowboarding.
- Avoid falls in the home by:
- Using a step stool with a grab bar to reach objects on high shelves;
- Installing handrails on stairways;
- Installing window guards to keep young children from falling out of open windows;
- Using safety gates at the top and bottom of stairs when young children are around;
- Maintaining a regular exercise program to improve strength, balance, and coordination;
- Removing tripping hazards, using non-slip mats in the bathtub and on shower floors, and putting grab bars next to the toilet and in the tub or shower; and
- Having vision tested regularly to decrease the risk of falling.
- Make sure the surface on your child's playground is made of shock-absorbing material (e.g., hardwood mulch, sand); and
- Keep firearms stored unloaded in a locked cabinet or safe. Store bullets in a separate secure location.
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