A significant cause of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is automobile accidents. Brain injuries that happen under these circumstances can occur in a variety of ways. They often cause long-term health problems that leave accident victims in pain, disabled, or suffering from other medical conditions, sometimes for the rest of their lives. Legal cases involving brain injuries are complicated, requiring a lawyer who is experienced in brain injury claims and the various, long-term effects victims may suffer as a result.
As any personal injury attorney who has dealt with brain injury cases knows, damages sometimes go far beyond what occurred at the scene of the accident. Understanding these hidden consequences, along with an extensive knowledge of personal injury law, is essential to best represent and protect victims and help them receive the settlement they deserve.
Long Term Effects of TBI
Traumatic brain injuries are classified as either mild or low-level, or severe or high-level. Concussions are common in a car accident and are usually considered to be a low-level injury. A knowledgeable brain injury claims lawyer can attest to the fact that open-brain injuries, and other closed-brain traumas that cause unconsciousness for longer than 30 minutes, are considered as more serious, high-level injuries. Of course, any brain injury can cause lasting effects, even low-level ones. Depending on the actual trauma, the extent of damage, and what part of the brain was injured, a trauma can take as little as a few days to as long as weeks, months or even years to heal. Some TBI’s can cause permanent physical or cognitive disability and other ongoing conditions. Most who have suffered a severe TBI do not recover 100 percent, meaning they are left with some kind of permanent condition or after-effect.
Emotional Consequences Of TBI
Although the obvious concerns with any brain injury are the possibility of long-term effects that leave a victim disabled or otherwise permanently affected, many consequences are not health related – at least not in the physical sense. Those who practice personal injury law say that a brain injury that causes disability, or other permanent changes in a person’s life, is a prime cause of mental health conditions, such as depression, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and a host of other emotional conditions.
The cause for these conditions can be physical, due to the actual injury creating a change in brain function or chemistry. There can also be secondary conditions, brought on by emotions experienced after the injury. Pain, disability, or other problems relating to the initial accident and injury, or its lasting effects, can lead to the development of psychological issues. As any experienced personal injury attorney can attest, psychological or emotional issues can be just as devastating as physical ones.
Financial Consequences Related to TBI
Something that cannot be overlooked is the fact that those dealing with a brain injury may have the added stress of financial problems due to medical bills, rehabilitation costs, and the loss of missed work. Some injuries also require the services of a health care worker, which may have to be paid out-of-pocket if not covered by insurance. When an injury causes a permanent disability, a victim could become unemployed as a result. These, and many other financial concerns related to the injury and its effects, can leave a person who suffers from a TBI in dire financial circumstances, which is why it is so important to seek the counsel of a skilled car accident attorney.
Lasting effects from Traumatic Brain Injury can be ongoing and may not show up immediately after an auto accident. They are not always medical in nature, manifesting as psychological, mental, or financial issues. Because the hidden consequences of TBI do not always appear right away, anyone who has suffered a head injury in an auto accident should speak to an experienced personal injury attorney or car accident attorney who is familiar with personal injury law and brain injury accidents. A skilled brain injury claims lawyer who understands the potential for long-term, non-physical effects, as well as other issues that may arise over time, is necessary to properly represent a victim and help them obtain an appropriate settlement.
Maurer Law
505 West Riverside Suite 400
Spokane WA 99201
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