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Head & Brain Injury: Your Rights And Your Future

If you’ve been in a motor vehicle accident, or other type of accident, such as a slip and fall, and are now experiencing sensitivity to light, headaches, or nausea, you may have suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Maybe you hit your head on something or were knocked unconscious and now something doesn’t feel right.
 
The good news is head and brain injuries are finally getting the attention they deserve in light of the link discovered between football and brain injuries which has greatly increased the study of these life-changing injuries. Whether it be from a car accident or a slip and fall, if you’ve been injured in a serious accident and suffered a head injury, consider reaching out to a skilled Las Vegas traumatic brain injury attorney.

Traumatic Brain Injury Symptoms And Time

Unfortunately, a lot of accidents have brain injuries that are not immediately detected and will have a long-term impact on many aspects of your life. Some of these symptoms may take months to develop.
 
After an accident, some of the common symptoms of head and traumatic brain injury include:

Mental/Emotional Symptoms of Brain Injuries

• Memory loss
• Confusion
• Difficulty concentrating
• Mood changes such as anger or newfound anxiety
• Trouble with sleep, either waking up or falling asleep

Behavioral and personality changes are also common due to changes to areas controlling hormones or major emotions. Headaches and pain can also occur as a result of a brain injury either directly from the damage or due to neurological conditions stemming from the injury. Due to the changes in the brain as well as the issues associated with the change in physical and mental capacity, depression and low self-esteem are common side effects that can be treated with psychological help.

Physical Symptoms of Brain Injuries

• Headaches
• Nausea
• Ringing in your ears
• Trouble focusing your eyes
• Trouble with speech
• Loss of smell or taste
• Trouble with coordination or loss of muscle function
• Weakness or paralysis

Brain injuries have far-reaching and varied consequences due to the nature of the brain being the main source of all bodily function and control.

Brain-injured people commonly experience issues with memory and confusion. There can be issues with either long or short-term memories depending on the location and severity of the injury. Sometimes memory can be improved through rehabilitation, although it can also be permanent.

Were You Unconscious?

The old method of judging the severity of your head brain injury was previously based on how long you were unconscious. This method over time has proven to be wholly inadequate. Some people with serious head injuries do not even experience unconsciousness. If you were unconscious, it’s important to get proper care as quickly as possible, but it’s equally important in cases where you may not have been unconscious but are now experiencing any of the above symptoms. In all cases, you need to be legally protected as soon as possible!

For immediate assistance, please contact Las Vegas traumatic brain injury lawyer Chandon Alexander at the Spartacus Law Firm (702) 660-1234

Severity Based On Symptoms

In Mild Brain Injuries, your symptoms may include headache, confusion, ear ringing, fatigue, changes in sleep patterns, mood, or behavior. Other symptoms can include trouble with memory, concentration, attention, or thinking. Mental fatigue is a common debilitating experience and may not be linked by the patient to the original (minor) incident. Narcolepsy and sleep disorders are common misdiagnoses.
 
In more Moderate/Severe Brain Injuries, cognitive symptoms will include confusion, aggressiveness, abnormal behavior, slurred speech, and coma, or other disorders of consciousness. Physical symptoms include headaches that worsen or do not go away, vomiting or nausea, convulsions, abnormal dilation of the eyes, inability to awaken from sleep, weakness in extremities, and loss of coordination.
 
For Brain Injuries in Children, symptoms observed include changes in eating habits, persistent irritability or sadness, changes in attention, or disrupted sleeping habits.

Prognosis

Many tests and specialists are often needed to determine the prognosis. People with minor brain damage can have debilitating side effects; not just severe brain damage patients.
 
The side-effects of a brain injury depend on location and the body’s response to injury. Even a mild concussion can have long-term effects that may not resolve.
Another misconception is that children heal better from brain damage. Children are at greater risk for injury due to lack of maturity. It makes future development hard to predict. This is because different cortical areas mature at different stages. In the case of a child with frontal brain injury, for example, the impact of the damage may be undetectable until that child fails to develop normal executive functions in his or her late teens and early twenties.

You Are Not Alone!

Recovering from any type of injury, especially one involving the brain, may seem like a tough journey, but it is possible to overcome your injury and move on with your life with proper care and support. There may be some challenges and setbacks, but plenty of people have faced the road to TBI recovery and successfully traveled it. If you suffered disability, pain, or suffering after a brain injury you need to know that you are not alone.

TECHNICAL DIAGNOSTIC AND HISTORICAL INFORMATION ON BRAIN INJURY

Several imaging techniques aid in diagnosing and assessing the extent of brain damage, such as computed tomography (CT) scan, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), positron emission tomography (PET), and single-photon emission tomography (SPECT).

CT scans and MRI are the two techniques widely used and are most effective:

CT scans can show brain bleeds, fractures of the skull, fluid build-up in the brain that will lead to increased cranial pressure.

MRI can better detect smaller injuries, detect damage within the brain, diffuse axonal injury, injuries to the brainstem, posterior fossa, and subtemporal and sub-frontal regions. However, patients with pacemakers, metallic implants, or other metal within their bodies are unable to have an MRI done. The other imaging techniques such as PET and SPECT scans are used in a clinical setting based on need, availability, and cost.

A Brief History Of Understanding Brain Injury

The foundation for understanding human behavior and brain injury can be attributed to the case of Phineas Gage and the famous case studies by Paul Broca.

The first case study on Phineas Gage’s head injury is one of the most astonishing brain injuries in history. In September of 1848, Phineas Gage was paving way for a new railroad line when he encountered an accidental explosion of a tamping iron straight through his frontal lobe. Gage was observed to be intellectually unaffected (he remained conscious) but exemplified marked post-injury behavioral deficits.

These deficits included becoming sporadic, disrespectful, extremely profane, and having no regard for other workers. Gage had many particular symptoms in the years to follow. He started having seizures in February 1860 and then died four months later on May 21, 1860.

One year later in 1861, Paul Broca examined two patients exhibiting impaired speech due to frontal lobe injuries. Broca’s first patient lacked productive speech. He saw this as an opportunity to address language localization. It wasn’t until Leborgne, formally known as “tan”, died when Broca confirmed the frontal lobe lesion from an autopsy. The second patient had similar speech impairments, supporting his findings on language localization. The results of both cases became a vital verification of the relationship between speech and the left cerebral hemisphere. The affected areas are known today as Broca’s area and Broca’s Aphasia.

Twelve years later in 1874, a German neuroscientist, Carl Wernicke, consulted on a stroke patient. The patient experienced neither speech nor hearing impairments but suffered from a few brain deficits including lacking the ability to comprehend what was spoken to him and the words written down. After his death, Wernicke examined his autopsy and found a lesion located in the left temporal region. This area became known as Wernicke’s area. Wernicke later hypothesized the relationship between Wernicke’s area and Broca’s area, which was a proven fact.

Today In Brain Science

Since then, brain science has made good incremental advances in our understanding, but unlike our excellent and deep understanding of the cardiovascular system, we are still continuously learning, mystified, and challenged daily in our understanding of the brain.

Recent research has demonstrated that neuroplasticity, which allows the brain to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections throughout life, provides for rearrangement of its workings and allows the brain to compensate for injury and disease. This understanding has led to recent advances in treatment such as Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) and the Johns Hopkins Brain Stimulation Program of Deep Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (dTMS).

The Spartacus Law Firm Has A No Recovery No Fee Policy

At the Spartacus Law Firm, we defend those who have been injured in an accident at every stage of the legal process. Chandon Alexander, Esq. is dedicated to helping victims who have suffered head or brain injuries in Nevada. If you’ve been injured in a serious accident and believe you’ve suffered head trauma, call the Spartacus Law Firm to speak with our qualified Las Vegas traumatic brain injury attorney today.