Brain & Nervous System Head Trauma Print Frontal Lobe Head Trauma Effects and Treatment By Eva Hvingelby, NP, PhD twitter linkedin Eva Hvingelby NP, PhD, is a nurse practitioner, researcher, educator, and health consultant specializing in trauma. Learn about our editorial process Eva Hvingelby, NP, PhD Medically reviewed by Medically reviewed by Claudia Chaves, MD on January 05, 2020 Claudia Chaves, MD, is board-certified in cerebrovascular disease and neurology with a subspecialty certification in vascular neurology. She is an associate professor of neurology at Tufts Medical School and medical director of the Lahey Clinic Multiple Sclerosis Center in Lexington, Massachusetts. Learn about our Medical Review Board Claudia Chaves, MD on January 05, 2020 Caiaimage / Trevor Adeline / Getty Images More in Brain & Nervous System Head Trauma Autism Headaches Multiple Sclerosis Parkinson's Disease Stroke Alzheimer's Down Syndrome Epilepsy Migraines More Neurological Diseases Neurological Symptoms & Diagnosis Treatment View All The brain is divided into six lobes, or sections: frontal, parietal, occipital, temporal, limbic and insular cortex. As it sounds, the frontal lobe lies at the front of the brain. If you could look through the skull it would begin right behind the eyebrows, travel up the forehead and then cover about one-third of the top of the head. The frontal lobe is responsible for shaping observable behavior and personal characteristics. It controls things such as personality, voluntary movements, impulse control, problem-solving, motivation, sexual and social behaviors. The left and right sides of the frontal lobe handle some different functions. The right frontal lobe is primarily associated with non-verbal skills, such as interpreting social cues. The left frontal lobe has greater control over language expression. Both the right and left sides of the frontal lobe communicate with each other, so damage to both sides tends to have more profound effects. Head Trauma and the Frontal Lobe The frontal lobe is one of the most common areas of the brain to be affected by head trauma. Mechanisms of frontal lobe head trauma include having the head: Hit the dashboard of a carStrike the front handlebars of a bicycleImpact the ground when thrown from a motorcycleStrike a tree or other immobile object during sportsReceive a blow from an assault When the front part of the skull impacts an object the skull may or may not break. If the skull fractures, this is called an open injury. An open skull fracture over the frontal lobe may push bone fragments into brain tissue. It also increases the risk of infection, because bacteria, fungi, and other infectious organisms can now come into contact with the brain. An open fracture may need to be surgically repaired. Any foreign bodies that entered the brain need to be removed, bleeding has to be stopped and the wound needs to be stabilized and closed. A closed frontal lobe injury means that the skull was not broken or punctured. The damage to the brain may still be serious if the impact caused bleeding or tearing of any of the nerves and tissues. If there is serious bleeding that leads to pressure on the brain, surgery may be needed to stop the bleed and remove the blood. Long-Term Effects of Frontal Brain Injury Damage to the frontal lobe can lead to a variety of personality changes. Some of these include: Making inappropriate commentsAlteration in patience and tolerance of othersDepressionNot responding appropriately to social cuesSocially inappropriate sexual comments or behaviorsIncreased or decreased interest in sexInsomniaAttention and concentration problemsDifficulty solving complex problemsSlowed critical thinkingIncreased or decreased talkativenessLack of spontaneous facial expressionMovement impairmentsLanguage difficultyImpulsive, dangerous behaviorsSubstance abuse Frontal lobe damage from head trauma manifests in many different ways, depending on the severity of the injury, what sections of the frontal lobe were injured, and pre-existing personality traits. Symptoms and Causes of Frontal Lobe Brain Damage Treatment of Frontal Lobe Brain Trauma With any type of head trauma treatment and brain injury management, the initial interventions focus on stopping bleeding and managing swelling and nerve death. There are a number of diagnostic tools for head trauma and brain injury. It’s common to have both an X-ray and CT scan immediately after the injury. Next, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan may be used to further identify which areas of the brain suffered damage. Since the front part of the brain is so closely related to behavior, a neuropsychologist may complete a number of personality and skill tests. This helps determine which skills remain and which need re-training. Interviews with the patient, family, and friends help the medical team and therapist understand how the head injury victim changed from the injury. From there, a brain injury rehabilitation plan is developed to bridge that gap and bring the person as closely back to their original functional state as possible. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Sign up for our Health Tip of the Day newsletter, and receive daily tips that will help you live your healthiest life. Sign Up You're in! Thank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up. There was an error. Please try again. What are your concerns? Other Inaccurate Hard to Understand Submit Article Sources Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. American Association of Neurological Surgeons. Traumatic Brain Injury.