While the effects of a traumatic brain injury are not always immediately apparent after a car accident or a fall, some of the symptoms can significantly impact your life, health, and ability to work. When someone else’s negligence caused your injury, it can be frustrating, and it can feel unfair that your life has been upended by this injury that is affecting every aspect of your life. If the cause of your injury was someone else’s negligence, you might have grounds for legal action to recover compensation for your damages and losses.
At Mezrano Law Firm, we understand the frustration of living with the effects of a traumatic brain injury caused by another person's negligence. We are here to help you recover the compensation you will need to cover your ongoing medical expenses, pain and suffering, and other losses related to the injury. You are welcome to schedule a free consultation with a compassionate Mobile traumatic brain injury lawyer who understands your struggle and is here to help you win.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that TBI is caused by a bump, blow or jolt to the head or penetrating head injury that disrupts the brain's normal function. The severity of a TBI can range from a mile, which creates a brief change in mental status or consciousness, to "severe," which can be an extended period of unconsciousness or amnesia after the injury. The CDC considers TBI a severe public health problem in the U.S., with 2.87 million TBI-related emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and deaths, including 837,000 of these health events among children.
The CDC reports that falls cause the most traumatic brain injury-related emergency room visits and hospitalizations, and car accidents are the leading cause of TBI-related deaths.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham, School of Medicine, reports that concussion is the same as a "mild" TBI. Both terms are used to describe when a person experiences a change in normal brain function for no longer than a minute following trauma. A concussion can have profound effects which are not usually life-threatening. While all concussions can be considered traumatic brain injuries, not all TBIs are concussions as it can also be caused by hypoxia which does not involve a blow to the head.
The UAM school of Medicine describes the following as symptoms of traumatic brain injury:
The Alabama Department of Rehabilitation Services reports that the following are some of the possible changes that a person might experience after suffering a traumatic brain injury:
Physical Consequences
Thinking Consequences
Emotional/Social Consequences
The Centre for Neuro Skills (CNS) reports that the evidence of minor cerebral injury is typically absent from the standard neurological examinations such as CT scans, and standard EEGs. . .But absence of evidence is not always proof of absence. Traumatic brain injury has been called a "silent epidemic," and it is a tremendous health problem that is largely unrecognized. An article in Brainline.org reports that, "about 85 percent of mild traumatic brain injuries are undetected by MRIs," a statistic that is likely a conservative one.
TBI is an injury that is not accompanied by a visible wound because the damage is done to the brain which is hidden inside of the skull. The disruption of the microscopic connections in the brain usually do not show up immediately, and as the Brainline article states, family, friends and coworkers often recognize changes in an individual with a brain injury before the injured person does. The article mentions a man who suffered a head injury after having suffered previous head injuries in the past. He was involved in a car accident and when it was over and he came to, he found his cell phone, but was unable to remember what to do with it.
TBI is frequently misdiagnosed because the onset of the symptoms is often delayed, and they get progressively worse slowly over time. A person with a traumatic brain injury looks fine, and sometimes the routine brain imaging scans do not detect a brain injury right away. The brain injured patient may also be suffering from other injuries after a fall or a car accident, so those are attended to and they don't receive care for the brain injury.
The risk of misdiagnosis of TBI, or a delayed diagnosis is that if it is not treated immediately, there is the risk that the brain damage could spread and lead to a permanent impairment or even death.
The Mobile Chamber of Commerce describes the city as a regional center for medical care, research and education with nearly 13 percent of Mobile's workforce being employed in the healthcare sector. The following are a few of the resources available to residents of Mobile, Alabama who are living with the effects of traumatic brain injury:
Because we take injury cases on contingency, you will not have to pay attorney fees up front. You do not pay attorney fees unless we have been able to recover compensation for you. With this arrangement, you get the benefit of working with a trusted traumatic brain injury attorney team with more than 40 years of combined legal experience without being required to pay for it upfront.
At Mezrano Law Firm, we are committed to fighting for fair compensation for our clients whether we settle the case or take it to trial.