Traumatic Brain Injury: How Is Brain Injury Severity Determined?

Has your loved one suffered a traumatic brain injury in an accident? Are you worried about how you will take care of your loved one after he or she comes home from the hospital? Is the insurance company giving you the run-around concerning coverage and benefits? If so, you need a seasoned and experienced personal injury attorney on your side who understands the issues and complexities of a traumatic brain injury and how to battle insurance companies.

Has your loved one suffered a traumatic brain injury in an accident? Are you worried about how you will take care of your loved one after he or she comes home from the hospital? Is the insurance company giving you the run-around concerning coverage and benefits? If so, you need a seasoned and experienced personal injury attorney on your side who understands the issues and complexities of a traumatic brain injury and how to battle insurance companies.

Gordon R. Levinson of The Levinson Law Firm can help you and your loved one. Mr. Levinson has represented some of the largest insurance companies in North America. Now he uses the knowledge he gained from that experience to fight for injured and aggrieved people against the big insurance companies.

We accept cases on a contingent fee. That means that if there is no recovery in your case you pay no fee. And in most cases, we even advance the costs. For your free consultation, call (760) 642-5475 today.

What is a Traumatic Brain Injury?

A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is caused by a violent blow to the head or a sharp jolt to the head or body causing the brain to slam against the skull. The result is damage to the brain cells, tissues, or nerves. There may also be bleeding, bruising, and other physical damage. TBI is the leading cause of disability and death in individuals between the ages of 1 and 44. The most common causes of TBI include automobile accidents, falls, sports injuries, and workplace accidents.

After an accident, it is vital to determine the severity of a traumatic brain injury so that proper medical care can be administered to decrease the potential for permanent damage. The severity of a traumatic brain injury depends on the circumstances of the injury and the location of the brain that was injured. The only way to determine the severity of a brain injury is to be examined and evaluated by a physician trained in treating a traumatic brain injury.

Types of Traumatic Brain Injury

There are two basic types of traumatic brain injury — closed and penetrating. In a closed brain injury, an object strikes the head causing the brain to move violently within the skull. An example of a closed head injury is striking your head against the dashboard in an automobile accident or your head striking the pavement in a slip and fall accident.
If you or a loved one has suffered a traumatic brain injury due to a hazardous condition, we encourage you to consult with an experienced trip and fall lawyer to explore your legal options and seek the compensation you deserve. 

A penetrating head injury occurs when an object fractures the skull and enters the brain tissue. This can occur in an automobile accident when a piece of the vehicle dislodges and embeds itself into the person’s skull. Finding and talking with the best lawyer for slip and fall cases near you to ensure you receive the compensation you deserve can be challenging, but not impossible.

Treating a Traumatic Brain Injury

A traumatic brain injury can range in severity from mild to severe. In the worst case, a traumatic brain injury can result in death. Closed head injuries are the most difficult to diagnose because there is no outward indication of damage to the skull or the brain. Therefore, it is critical that you seek medical attention immediately after an accident even though you may “feel fine.” You cannot determine the severity of a traumatic brain injury simply by monitoring the symptoms. Symptoms are only one element of diagnosing the severity of a brain injury. The physician must perform other tests to determine how severe the trauma is to the brain.

Traumatic brain injury symptoms may not present themselves for days or weeks after an accident. If you experience any of the following symptoms at any time following an accident, immediately seek medical attention:

• Loss of consciousness
• Headaches
• Memory loss or attention problems
• Confusion
• Fatigue
• Sleeping problems
• Seizures
• Nausea
• Dizziness
• Depression, anxiety, aggression, or mood changes
• Impaired vision, hearing, or speech
• Paralysis or extreme weakness
• Lack of or impaired coordination or balance