Certified Brain Injury Specialist (CBIS) Exam
Study Guide: Comprehensive Q&A with Verified
Answers Updated 2025
lost productivity - ✔✔one measure of the cost to society due to injury or disease;
includes the loss of wages a person would have earned if they had not become
unemployable due to disability, loss of taxes contributing to economy, costs to
the government of supporting the individual, etc.; lost productivity costs DO NOT
include cost of treatment and support post-injury or illness
acquired brain injury (ABI) - ✔✔An injury to the brain that is not hereditary,
congenital, degenerative, or induced by birth trauma
traumatic brain injury (TBI) - ✔✔an alteration in brain function, or other evidence
of brain pathology, caused by an external force
traumatic impact - ✔✔injuries resulting from contact (when head is struck by or
against an object)
,traumatic intertial injuries - ✔✔injury to the brain not caused by impact but as a
result of inertial forces, such as acceleration-deceleration forces
closed injuries - ✔✔injury to the brain resulting in brain lacerations, contusions or
intracerebral hemorrhage
open injuries - ✔✔injury to the head in which there is a breach of the skull or a
breach of the meninges
penetrating brain injury - ✔✔any injury that involves the penetration of a foreign
object, munitions, fragment, bone chip, etc. through the dura mater
non-traumatic brain injury - ✔✔damage to the brain caused by internal factors,
such as oxygen or nutrient deprivation to brain cells, exposure to toxins, pressure
from a tumor or blockage, or other neurological disorder
,coup-contrecoup injury - ✔✔Coup injury: head injury that results from impact of
a moving object--occurs at the site of impact
Contrecoup effect: impact injury resulting from the moving head striking a
stationary object--injury occurs at the side of the head opposite the point of
impact
primary injury - ✔✔initial cause of damage to the brain, from which injury
severity ratings are obtained
secondary injury - ✔✔pathophysiological events that occur following the initial
primary injury to the brain
loss of consciousness (LOC) - ✔✔temporary altered state, unlike sleep, when a
person is unresponsive to stimuli; usually due to trauma, stroke, or other injury
, risk factors for brain injury - ✔✔injury severity
age at injury
alcohol misuse
domestic violence
service in the military
participation in sports
history of prior brain injury
chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) - ✔✔a condition, diagnosed after death,
relative to multiple concussions caused by significant force. A progressive
degenerative disease, CTE is most often sustained by athletes participating in
contact sports; may also be observed in domestic violence victims or abused
children who have sustained numerous blows to the head
Study Guide: Comprehensive Q&A with Verified
Answers Updated 2025
lost productivity - ✔✔one measure of the cost to society due to injury or disease;
includes the loss of wages a person would have earned if they had not become
unemployable due to disability, loss of taxes contributing to economy, costs to
the government of supporting the individual, etc.; lost productivity costs DO NOT
include cost of treatment and support post-injury or illness
acquired brain injury (ABI) - ✔✔An injury to the brain that is not hereditary,
congenital, degenerative, or induced by birth trauma
traumatic brain injury (TBI) - ✔✔an alteration in brain function, or other evidence
of brain pathology, caused by an external force
traumatic impact - ✔✔injuries resulting from contact (when head is struck by or
against an object)
,traumatic intertial injuries - ✔✔injury to the brain not caused by impact but as a
result of inertial forces, such as acceleration-deceleration forces
closed injuries - ✔✔injury to the brain resulting in brain lacerations, contusions or
intracerebral hemorrhage
open injuries - ✔✔injury to the head in which there is a breach of the skull or a
breach of the meninges
penetrating brain injury - ✔✔any injury that involves the penetration of a foreign
object, munitions, fragment, bone chip, etc. through the dura mater
non-traumatic brain injury - ✔✔damage to the brain caused by internal factors,
such as oxygen or nutrient deprivation to brain cells, exposure to toxins, pressure
from a tumor or blockage, or other neurological disorder
,coup-contrecoup injury - ✔✔Coup injury: head injury that results from impact of
a moving object--occurs at the site of impact
Contrecoup effect: impact injury resulting from the moving head striking a
stationary object--injury occurs at the side of the head opposite the point of
impact
primary injury - ✔✔initial cause of damage to the brain, from which injury
severity ratings are obtained
secondary injury - ✔✔pathophysiological events that occur following the initial
primary injury to the brain
loss of consciousness (LOC) - ✔✔temporary altered state, unlike sleep, when a
person is unresponsive to stimuli; usually due to trauma, stroke, or other injury
, risk factors for brain injury - ✔✔injury severity
age at injury
alcohol misuse
domestic violence
service in the military
participation in sports
history of prior brain injury
chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) - ✔✔a condition, diagnosed after death,
relative to multiple concussions caused by significant force. A progressive
degenerative disease, CTE is most often sustained by athletes participating in
contact sports; may also be observed in domestic violence victims or abused
children who have sustained numerous blows to the head
