If you or a loved one has suffered a traumatic brain injury, step one is know your rights.

Q What is a brain injury?

A brain injury could cause temporary or permanent problems in the brain. Some injuries are more serious than others. They can be medically induced due to some sort of medical malpractice, or be caused in day-to-day living, including motor vehicle accidents, sports-related traumatic brain injury, and personal injury incidents that could happen in a slip-and-fall accident or an injury on the job. Brain injury victims may suffer only a mild concussion or permanent brain damage. In this short article, we’ll look at the traumatic injury issues that surround brain injury claims, the overall prognosis with a traumatic brain injury, and how hiring personal injury attorneys who specialize in helping you determine if a traumatic brain injury lawsuit is the best course of action to deal with catastrophic injuries, spinal cord injuries, cognitive impairments, loss of memory and even mild brain injury.

Q What types of brain injury are there?

There are two broad categories of brain injuries: traumatic brain injuries and acquired injuries. Traumatic brain injury includes more obvious “impact” injuries, such as penetrating injuries (an object piercing the skull and entering the brain), contusions, coup-contrecoup injuries (an impact causing the brain to slam into another part of the skull, creating another contusion at the second location), diffuse axonal injury, and concussion. Acquired injuries are caused by oxygen deficiency. They include anoxemia (absolute oxygen deficiency, which may result in cell death) and hypoxemic brain injury (partial oxygen deficiency, which may also result cell death).

Signs and Symptoms of a Brain Injury

Brain injuries are often caused by head trauma. Initial signs and symptoms of a head injury are many and varied. Headaches are common, as well as fatigue and lethargy. Executive functions may be affected, such as cognitive ability. Personality disorders and psychiatric disorders can develop. 

Sleep disturbances can occur. Memory loss is also possible.

A brain injury can cause physical problems that impact the body in various ways. The most obvious symptom is an inability to move or speak normally.

Testing and Diagnosis

Anyone who has been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury (TBI) should get immediate medical help. Medical providers try to stabilize the patient and focus on preventing further injuries. A quick examination of the entire person is done first, then a complete neurological exam. Neurological exams include testing using the Glasgow Coma Scale, and assessing the ability of the pupils’ to become smaller in bright lights. Patients with large mass lesions or high ICP may have a wide or dilated eye on one side. This indicates a large mass lesion. Brain stem reflexes such as gag and blink may also be tested.

Radiologic tests are used to diagnose brain injuries. Computed tomography scans are the gold standard for diagnosing head injuries. X-ray imaging is less accurate than CT scans. Skull x-rays are not recommended for evaluating mild neurological dysfunction.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is not usually performed for patients with head injuries because it takes longer than a Computed Tomography (CT). Once a patient is stable, MRI may show lesions that were not seen on the CT scan. These lesions are helpful for predicting outcome.

Q How do brain injuries affect one’s daily life?

If you or a loved one has suffered a traumatic brain injury, quality of life after receiving initial medical care will normally be affected negatively, short term or long term.

Cognitive deficits caused by brain injury can be treated with cognitive therapy. A person who suffers from anoxia (lack of oxygen to the brain) may need help to hold down a job or perform other tasks. Social workers can help people with brain injuries fulfill their needs.

Brain injuries can make people oversensitive and prone to outbursts. They can also impair physical abilities. Victims often need the use of canes or wheelchairs to help them move around.

Rehabilitation

A patient with a head injury should be transferred to a rehab center as soon as possible. The patient needs to be monitored closely because he/she might suffer complications. Patients with mild injuries need outpatient treatment while patients with moderate or severe injuries need inpatient care.

Cognitive retraining is a controversial concept. At most rehab centers, the emphasis is on compensating for deficits caused by head injuries. Rehabilitation focuses on helping the patient return to normal life as much as possible. Families are educated about what to expect from the patient.

If I’ve suffered a brain injury what legal claim can I bring?

The first step if you’ve suffered a TBI is to contact a traumatic brain injury attorney – this is a specialist brain injury lawyer who knows the ins and outs of TBIs, including what to look for in short term and long term issues, as well as what kind of care and therapy may be required to treat the traumatic brain injury case. Having legal representation can help both with the costly medical bills that can happen as the result of brain trauma, and with the long term therapy and care for brain injury survivors.

Q What are the benefits to filing a lawsuit for my brain injury?

Brain injuries are very serious. You should seek medical attention as soon as possible after being injured. Depending on the severity of your injuries, you may need ongoing treatment. Your injuries may prevent you from working, or limit your ability to do certain jobs.

Brain injuries can change people’s lives forever. You may lose some of your friends and family, and you might even lose your job. Your finances could also take a big hit if you’re unable to work. The legal system may not always do what you want them to do, so you need to make sure you get the best lawyer possible.

Silberstein, Awad, and Miklos P.C., are one of the premier Nassau and Suffolk County NY Brain Injury Law Firms, specializing in helping their clients get the financial compensation they need to move past their traumatic head injury or spinal injury and get on with their life in the best possible way. 

Brain injuries can significantly affect relationships. Your injuries may prevent you from working. You may need ongoing therapy. You may lose money if you’re unable to work. A successful suit could help you pay for therapy. Depending on the severity of your injury, you may be eligible to receive a large compensation amount. Your injuries may prevent you from working, or make you less efficient at work. This could affect your future income potential. You may need ongoing mental health treatment, which could cost a lot of money. A successful lawsuit could help pay for these costs.udddaf