Abstract:
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is considered an
epidemic that continues to compromise the welfare
of humankind. Despite the extensive efforts invested
in countering this clinical health problem, current
clinical science and technology still fall short of
providing a pharmacological cure for TBI rendering
tens of thousands of TBI patients vulnerable to its
detrimental sequelae. Over the past 30 years, the
understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms
of TBI indicates that the pathology of TBI is biphasic.
It comprises 2 injuries; the primary and the secondary
injuries. The primary injury occurs simultaneously
with the impact that caused the injury, which explains
why this injury is not amenable to acute intervention.
Whereas the secondary injury is a composite of
interwoven pathophysiological responses that
commence after the initial trauma leading to delayed,
non-mechanical impairment of neuronal structure
and function. In this review, we aim to highlight the
main pathophysiological mechanisms that take place
in the primary and secondary phases of traumatic
brain injury.