Commentary on Kamper et. al., juvenile traumatic brain injury evolves into a chronic brain disorder: The challenges in longitudinal studies of juvenile traumatic brain injury

Juvenile traumatic brain injury (TBI) leaves survivors facing a potential lifetime of cognitive, somatic and emotional symptoms. A recent study published in Experimental Neurology (Kamper et al., 2013) explored the chronic consequences of focal brain injury induced in the juvenile animal, extending their previous observations out to 6 months post-injury. The results demonstrate transient, persistent, and late onset behavioral dysfunction, which are associated with subtle evidence for enduring histopathology. In line with investigations about chronic traumatic encephalopathy from brain injury initiated in the adult, juvenile TBI establishes signs of a chronic brain disorder, with unique considerations relative to ongoing developmental processes. This commentary discusses the challenges in evaluating aging with injury in the juvenile population, the current methods of juvenile TBI, and what can be anticipated for the future of the field.