Rehab After Traumatic Brain Injury Driven By Many Factors

04:09

January 24, 2011

The husband of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz, Mark Kelly, center, prepares to climb into a helicopter in Houston. Giffords, who is recovering from a gunshot wound to the head was transferred to a Houston intensive care unit. (AP/Office of Rep. Giffords, F. Carter Smith)

Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords is facing a delay in her transfer to a rehabilitation hospital, remaining in a Houston intensive care unit as doctors wait for a fluid buildup on her brain to subside with the help of a drain.

Doctors say she is continuing to show many positive signs, but there are also indications of weakness and possible partial paralysis. Dr. Ross Zafonte of Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston tells us about the many factors that impact recovery after a gunshot to the brain, including how post-trauma amnesia is one good indicator of longterm success.

Here & Now: Experts find no definitive profile of a killer
New York Times: Shot in the head, but getting back on his feet and on with his life

This segment aired on January 24, 2011.