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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health

Sec. Injury Prevention and Control

Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1556147

Global, regional, and national burdens of traumatic brain injury from 1990 to 2021

Provisionally accepted
Junqing Yan Junqing Yan *Chao Wang Chao Wang Bangqing Sun Bangqing Sun *
  • Nanxiang Branch of Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai 201802, China, Shanghai, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    BackgroundOf all the injuries on a global scale, traumatic brain injury (TBI) has the most serious consequences for the individual. Depending on its severity, it can be classified as minor, moderate, or severe, but even minor TBI can sometimes still cause severe functional deficits. This study seeks to assess the latest burden of TBI and analyze their differences in terms of country, age, sex, and cause. MethodsBased on the Global Burden of Diseases database, the incidence, years lived with disability(YLDs), and causes of total head injuries, minor TBI, and moderate/severe TBI from 1990 to 2021 were analyzed separately by sex, age group, and region.ResultsIn 2021, there were 20837,465 (95% uncertainty interval (UI) : 18128306-23839,393) new cases of TBI worldwide, with an age-standardized incidence of 259 cases per 100,000 population (95% UI: 226–296). From 1990 to 2021, there was a decline in global age-standardized incidence (estimated annual percentage change: -0.11%, 95% UI: -0.18% - -0.04%). In 2021, countries with higher rates will be mainly in Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle East. In 2021, the global incidence of TBI in all age groups was higher in men than in women. Falls are the leading cause for most age groups in most areas.DiscussionTBI still accounts for a significant portion of the global injury burden in 2021, but differences do exist between countries. This study introduced the possibility of TBI with different degrees and the trend of injury causes in different age groups and regions from 1990 to 2021, providing a basis for further research on injury causes in different regions and formulating corresponding policies and protection measures in the future.

    Keywords: Traumatic Brain Injury, global health, burden of disease, Public Health, Epidemiology

    Received: 06 Jan 2025; Accepted: 01 Apr 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Yan, Wang and Sun. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Junqing Yan, Nanxiang Branch of Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai 201802, China, Shanghai, China
    Bangqing Sun, Nanxiang Branch of Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai 201802, China, Shanghai, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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