Acquired brain injury (ABI)

Understanding acquired brain injury

Acquired brain injury (ABI) refers to any damage to the brain that occurs after birth. In children, ABI can result from:

Infections such as meningitis or encephalitis
Strokes or other vascular events
Oxygen deprivation (e.g. near-drowning, seizures)
Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) from falls, accidents, or sports.

These injuries can affect a child’s:

Senses, movement and coordination
Eating and swallowing
Memory, attention, and concentration
Speech and language
Behaviour and emotional regulation

Symptoms can range from mild to severe, and recovery varies for each child. Some children recover quickly, while others may experience long-term challenges.

Learning to live with an ABI can be a long and difficult process, which is why ongoing research aims to improve the lives of children who have sustained an ABI.

Quick facts on ABI

600 to 1,600 children per 100,000 experience traumatic brain injury (TBI) each year.
Nearly 1 in 100 Australian children are treated in emergency departments annually for TBI.
TBI is the leading cause of acquired disability and death in children in high-income countries, like Australia.
Stroke also occurs at high rates in young children.
Over 3,000 children present to The Royal Children’s Hospital with TBI each year.
Many of these children require a CT scan to rule out serious injury.

MCRI’s research on ABI

MCRI’s research on ABI

At the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI), our multidisciplinary team of researchers, clinicians, and educators is dedicated to improving outcomes for children with ABI. Our work focuses on:

Long-term outcomes

We’ve been studying the long-term effects of childhood TBI for over 20 years. By combining data from hospitals across Australia and New Zealand, we’re identifying recovery trajectories, risk and resilience factors, and protective influences. These insights help shape more effective interventions.

Concussion and mild TBI

Concussions are the most common form of mild TBI. Our research aims to:

Improve diagnosis and management
Identify children at risk of delayed recovery
Test treatments including education, physiotherapy, and psychology We’re also exploring the use of a finger-prick blood test to predict prolonged concussion symptoms, enabling earlier intervention.

Childhood stroke

Each year, 100–300 children and up to 5,000 newborns in Australia experience a stroke. Our team has developed national guidelines tospeed up diagnosis and improve rehabilitation outcomes

Impacts of MRI's ABI research

MCRI’s research has led to:

New diagnostic tools, including blood biomarkers for TBI severity
Evidence-based treatment protocols for concussion and stroke
National and international collaborations to improve care pathways

Our clinical impacts

In collaboration with Canadian researchers we identified a blood protein that helps predict TBI severity and recovery outcomes in children. Ongoing studies are exploring additional biomarkers.
We developed Australia and New Zealand’s first clinical practice guidelines for managing children’s head injuries, ensuring consistent care across emergency departments and helps indentify tCi in children, even with seemingly mild injuries.
We co-developed a digital platform to assess and support rehabilitation for children with movement disorders and ABI, enabling more accurate and remote evaluations to inform the best rehabilitation.
Our long-term studies with TBI are continued through projects that focus on social and behavioural difficulties, plus family and child-based interventions, to improve quality of life and function.
We developed the Australia's first clinical guidelines on strokes to improve the diagnosis and acute management of children who have a stroke. These aim to minimise brain injury and improve recovery..
We created clinical practices guideline for managing communication and swallowing disorders after moderate-to-severe TBI ensures children receive the best care.

Our vision

Our vision

Our vision is better diagnosis, management and treatment of brain injury, enabling improved recovery and fewer impacts on the brains and lives of affected children.

Supporting children and families

Living with an acquired brain injury can be a long and difficult journey. MCRI is committed to supporting children and their families through:

Ongoing research
Clinical partnerships
Community education

Where to next?

Current research is focused on interventions to improve mental health outcomes and quality of life after ABI. We are working with families with lived experience to help improve our models of care.