Pediatric acquired brain injury

In this chapter, we delve into the elaborate landscape of acquired brain injury (ABI) in children. Pediatric ABI encompasses a large group of conditions causing insult and injury to the developing brain, resulting in wide spectrum of neurodevelopmental sequelae. Traumatic brain injury is the most common cause of ABI in children, and abusive head trauma (AHT) is the most common etiology in the youngest children. Nontraumatic causes of ABI in children include anoxia/hypoxia-ischemia, stroke, encephalitis/meningitis, and auto-immune disease. As ABI disrupts complex pathophysiological processes occurring from infancy through adolescence, children with ABI are at risk for short- and long-term neurodevelopmental deficits involving multiple areas of functioning, including motor, sensory, feeding, communication, cognition, and behavior. The most severe injuries may result in a child remaining in a state of altered awareness and wakefulness (disorders of consciousness). Restoration and adaptation are the goals of rehabilitation and require a multidisciplinary team including medical professionals, allied health professionals, and education specialists. Children should be followed throughout their childhood to monitor for evolving or emerging neurodevelopmental impairments and to ensure children and their families receive all needed treatments, guidance, accommodations, and support to optimize their function.