BRAIN/HEAD INJURY

Brain damage or head injuries are some of the most severe that a person can experience. The impact upon the injured person and their family can be devastating. These injuries are extremely painful. They can dramatically change a person’s quality of life. Brain or head injuries cost a substantial amount of money for medical treatment and long term care. If you or someone you love has suffered brain damage or a head injury from an auto accident or other personal injury call Shunnarah Law.

TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY

Traumatic Brain Injury, often referred to as TBI, commonly occurs when sudden trauma causes damage to the brain. TBI also can result when the head mildly hits an object or when an object pierces the skull and enters the brain tissue. Symptoms of TBI vary from mild moderate to severe depending on the extent of damage to the brain. A person with TBI may remain conscious or may suffer a loss of consciousness for seconds or minutes.

The symptoms of TBI are varied. 

They may include:

Physical - Headaches, dizziness, loss of balance, nausea and vomiting, blurred vision and confusion.

Mental - amnesia, short-term memory loss, poor judgment and concentration.

Emotional - depression, agitation, apathy, volatile temper, fearfulness, and impatience, sleep and appetite trouble.

Car accidents and other personal injuries are among the leading causes of brain injuries. According to CDC the U.S center for disease control and prevention there are approximately 1.5 million people in the U.S who suffer from traumatic brain injury each year. Fifty Thousand die from TBI each year and 85,000 people suffer from long term disability. The causes of brain injury include open head injury, close head injury, deceleration injuries, chemical/toxic hypoxia, tumors, infections, and stroke.

Many times brain injuries can be diagnosed during the emergency room visits by an MRI, CT scan, X rays, or an EEG. Other times brain injuries can not immediately be detected and symptoms may become permanent after a period of time. Unfortunately, brain injuries are frequently permanent in nature and can have devastating effects not only on the individual who has been hurt but upon their family. An individual with a brain injury may have a loss of income, a loss of ability to work and earn money, a loss of his/her normal ability to function as a person. Everything may be affected from walking, talking, or thinking.

Immediate medical treatment is essential. Since little can be done to reverse the initial brain damage caused by trauma, the goal of medical personnel is to stabilize the patient and focus on preventing further injury. In order to stabilize the patient, doctors will determine whether there is proper oxygen supply to the brain and body, ensure adequate blood flow, and control blood pressure. A variety of tests and imaging tools are used to determine diagnosis and prognosis. Skull and neck X-rays are used to find bone fractures or spinal instability. Patients may receive rehabilitation which include physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech/language therapy, psychology/psychiatry, and social support.

Nearly one-half of patients with head injuries will require surgery to remove or repair a ruptured blood vessel or bruised brain tissue. Disabilities frequently occur. Common disabilities include cognition (thinking, memory, and reasoning), sensory processing (sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell), communication (expression and understanding), and behavior or mental health (depression, anxiety, personality changes, aggression, acting out, and social inappropriateness). A patient with a severe head injury may be in an unresponsive state, a coma, vegetative state, or persistent vegetative state (PVS).