TBI Diagnostics

There are many diagnostic tools available to help evaluate for a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), but it’s important to understand that a normal scan does not always mean there is no injury. In fact, some individuals with clear TBI symptoms may have negative imaging results or inconsistent findings on early evaluations.

That’s why diagnostic results should always be viewed in combination with:

  • The patient’s medical and trauma history

  • The type and mechanism of injury

  • The number of head injuries sustained

  • The duration and severity of post-injury symptoms

  • First-hand, subjective experiences reported by the patient

In short: you can have a TBI even if your scans look “normal.” A complete and thorough evaluation relies on combining objective tools with clinical judgment and patient-centered insight.

Explore Diagnostic Types Below

Click on any diagnostic tool below to learn more about its purpose, what it detects, and how it’s used in evaluating brain injury. Each link will open a dedicated page with the latest insights and clinical relevance.

Just click on type of Diagnostic below to get more information about it.  This will take you to a new page. 

(If not hyperlinked to a new page, the page is not created here yet. Medical science is changing all the time, so check back often for new additions to this page.)

Clinical Assessment Tools:

  • Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS)
  • Emerging Unified Framework (CBI-M)
  • Initial Cognitive Exam/Assessment
  • HTEC (Head Trauma Events Characteristics)
  • Neuropsychological Testing
    • Awareness of Social Inference Test (TASIT)
    • Galveston Orientation and Amnesia Test (GOAT) and Children’s Orientation and Attention Test (COAT)
    • ImPACT (Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing)
    • King-Devick Test (K-D)
    • Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) & Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA)
    • Neuropsychological Battery(NAB)
    • Performance Validity Tests
    • Post-Concussion Symptom Scales/Graded Symptom Checklist
    • SCAT 5/Child SCAT5
    • Standardized Assessment of Concussion (SAC)
    • Structured Interviews and Symptom Scale
    • Trail Making Test (TMT)
    • Weschler Adult Intelligence Scale- Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV)
  • Rivermead Post-Concussion Symptoms Questionnaire (RPQ)

Neuroimaging Technologies:

  • CT Scan (and AI driven CT)
  • MRI
    • Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
    • Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI)
    • Susceptibility Weighted Imaging (SWI)
    • Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS)
  • SPECT Scan
  • SPECT-CT Hybrid Imaging
  • PET Scan

Auditory Tests After Brain Injury

  • Complete Audiogram and Tympanogram
  • Pure-Tone Audiometry
  • Otoscopy
  • Tuning Fork Tests (Rinne and Weber)
  • Speech-In-Noise and Degraded Speech Testing
  • Tympanometry & Acoustic Reflex Testing
  • Vestibular and Balance Assessments

Blood Biomarker Testing

  • Abbott Alinity i Lab Test
  • Abbott i-STAT TBI Cartridge
  • Comprehensive Biomarker Panels
  • Experimental Biomarkers
  • FDA Cleared Biomarker Panels
  • Sensitivity and Specificity Insights

Visual Processing Assessments

  • Beery-Buktenica Visual- AMoto Integration (Beery VMI)
  • Behavioral Inattention Test (BIT), Line Bisection Test (LBT), Catherine Bergego Scale (CBS), Bells Test
  • Brain Injury Visual Assessment Battery for Adults (biVABA)
  • Brain Injury Vision Symptom Survey (BIVSS)
  • King Devick Test
  • Motor-Free Visual Perception Test (MVPT-3)
  • Standard Eye Movement & Perception Tests
  • Test of Visual Perception Skills (TVPS-4)
  • Visual Evoked Potential (VEP)

Neuro-Optometric (specialized) Assessments

  • Accommodation (Eye Focusing)
  • Binocular Vision Assessment
  • Depth Perception and Fusion
  • Developmental Eye Movement (DEM) Test
  • Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation
  • Oculomotor Function
  • Visual Processing and Higher-Order Visual Skills
  • Visual-Vestibular Integration and Preipheral Vision

Artifical Intelligence, Experimental Tools, and Portable Apps

  • Advanced Research Imaging
  • AI Enhanced Imaging Tools
  • Biomarker Point-of-Care (POC) Testing
  • Experimental Imaging (DTI)
  • Functional Biomarkers
  • MEG-Based Detection Methods
  • Neurophysiological Metrics and Mechanical Modeling
  • Prognostic AI Models
  • Radiomics on CT Scans
  • Smartphone/VR Tools (READY & MINDSCAPE)

Medical Science is evolving rapidly! Check back on this page often for updates as we add new diagnostics, research-backed tools, and patient-guided resources as we learn about them.

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