A traumatic brain injury (TBI)—also known as craniocerebral trauma—occurs when an outside force leads to brain dysfunction. The external force can impact the brain in two ways. It can cause injuries on the side of the impact. It can also lead to injuries on the side opposite the impact, where the brain collides with the skull. When the force is substantial, the brain may hit the skull in multiple places, creating injuries throughout the brain.
While a person should treat all TBIs as severe injuries, they range in severity. Symptoms can include blurry vision, irritability, confusion, difficulty concentrating, memory loss, and more. Often, the symptoms worsen in the days following an accident. Every person who experiences a potential brain injury needs medical care. They should have a medical professional check them out and rule out the possibility of a TBI.
The first thing you should do after receiving a blow to the head is seek medical care — early intervention can improve your outcome. The next thing you should do is contact a Bee Cave traumatic brain injury lawyer. Our team of catastrophic injury attorneys can help you file a claim.
Experiencing any injury can impact a person’s judgment. People often feel overwhelmed, confused, and in pain. They want to focus on healing, but they also need to deal with insurance claims, health insurance, and confusing medical bills.
These things impact TBI victims even more than other types of injury victims. Craniocerebral trauma can lead to difficulties with reasoning, judgment, and decision-making. That makes people more vulnerable to predatory insurance companies, who may offer lowball settlement offers to someone in the aftermath of an injury. An injured person needs someone to watch out for their best interests even more than in other areas.
When determining whether a settlement offer is fair, it is essential to consider the lifelong costs of the injury. Immediate medical bills are important, but TBIs can lead to lifelong medical bills, physical therapy, and more. People may lose wages immediately, but they can also experience a loss in earning capability. Depending on the severity of the injury, a person may need assistance with daily living. Any settlement needs to consider all of these issues, as well as pain and suffering, loss of consortium, and loss of quality of life. An attorney in Bee Cave can help a person understand the actual costs of the traumatic brain injury.
Medical professionals use three terms to describe TBIs — mild, moderate, and severe. These classifications refer to the impact of that particular brain injury. However, it is essential to realize that brain injuries are cumulative. Multiple mild brain injuries or concussions can have a more significant cumulative effect than a single moderate or severe brain injury. A person’s medical history can play a role in medical treatment and litigation.
Mild head injuries come with mild symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, and nausea. These symptoms may last from a few days to a few weeks but leave no noticeable changes. Moderate and severe brain injuries can stay for more extended periods and may even be permanent. They can impair function in different ways, and the extent of the impairment depends not only on the severity of the injury but also on its location in the brain.
Proving brain injuries can be complex. Modern medicine still has much to learn about the brain and its functions. So, demonstrating that a mild or moderate brain injury led to impairment can be difficult. However, imaging tests like CT Scans and MRIs can show the damage to the brain. It is essential to get repeated imaging because the injuries can worsen over the first several days following an action as pressure builds up inside the brain. A lawyer in Bee Cave can use imaging and other medical records to secure compensation for a traumatic brain injury.
It used to be challenging to prove craniocerebral trauma, which allowed wrongdoers to escape without paying for their harm. Fortunately, it is easier to prove them today. Your doctors should be using imaging to diagnose and treat you. These images will be helpful when proving the existence of an injury. A Bee Cave traumatic brain injury lawyer can recommend medical professionals for testing and treatment if you do not have a reliable medical team. Plan a consultation to learn more.