Brain Injury Lawyer

What are the types of brain injuries?

There are several different types of brain injuries. If the trauma results in damage to the skull itself, such as a crack or break, the trauma is considered a penetrating head injury. More difficult to diagnose are closed head injuries, where the skull is not obviously damaged but the brain is still injured. This can occur from a blow or impact, or from severe back-and-forth shaking, such as whiplash. Babies and small children can suffer such injuries from being shaken, known as “shaken baby syndrome.” Contact a Kentucky or Tennessee brain injury lawyer at Hughes & Coleman today for a free and confidential evaluation of your case.

What are the signs of a brain injury?

A medical professional should evaluate anyone who has sustained a blow to the head or suffered whiplash-like injuries to determine if the victim has experienced a TBI. Even if symptoms are so slight that the victim does not realize that a serious injury has occurred, treatment should be sought before further injury develops. Often the symptoms may be delayed for many hours until swelling in the brain reaches a point that if affects the victim. Some signs and symptoms to look for include:

Physical Symptoms
Dizziness, loss of balance, headaches, nausea and vomiting, blurred vision, drowsiness, and confusion

Mental/Cognitive Symptoms
Intermittent disorientation, amnesia, short-term memory loss, poor judgment, and poor concentration

Emotional Symptoms
Depression, agitation, irritability, apathy, confrontational attitude, explosive temper, fearfulness and impatience, personality changes in general, sleep disruption(early morning awakening), and appetite disturbances

For more information or support, please visit the Brain Injury Association of America.

Long-term problems

TBIs are serious, life-threatening events that can result in permanent, irreversible damage to the brain. With severe brain injuries, the impairments are obvious and profound. They can result in paralysis, weakness, or abnormalities including loss of sensation, coordination, or intellectual capacity.

The more difficult, often overlooked cases are those where neurological and mental changes are subtle. These may happen as a result of what appears to be a minor accident in which the brain is jarred. Symptoms, called soft signs, begin to appear afterwards, sometimes after long periods of time.

In either case, a TBI can have a profound effect on quality of life, including inability to work, inability to interact with friends and family, and loss of body function. A Kentucky or Tennessee brain injury lawyer from Hughes & Coleman knows the letter of the law and will help you receive compensation for your TBI.

Relevant terminology

Concussion
Occurs when the head receives a trauma and the brain is jarred inside the skull, which can end in a period of confusion

Retrograde Amnesia
Loss of memory of events that preceded the injury

Anterograde Amnesia
Loss of forward memory after the injury

Brain Contusion
A bruise to the brain

Focal Injury
An injury to one part of the brain leaving the other parts intact

Diffuse Injury
Denotes widespread damage

Contrecoup Injury
Brain damage occurring at the side of the brain opposite the trauma, caused by the cerebral spinal fluid drifting backwards. If the blow is hard enough, it forces the brain against the back of the skull.

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