Head injuries can be caused by a lot of situations, such as bicycle accidents, auto accidents, boat accidents, truck accidents, and many more accidents. In recent years, it has been recognized that brain injury effects are long-lasting.
The Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania has done some research that proves that one head injury could lead to dementia later in life. As the risk factors for brain injury are endless, so is the risk of getting multiple head injuries and getting dementia. More and more head injuries are associated with dementia and other issues such as depression and Alzheimer’s.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Traumatic Brain Injury and Concussion Branch, 80% of people with mild traumatic brain injuries will not have any long-term effects and will get better quickly. However, 20% of people with severe injuries may have problems and symptoms that last for a long time.
According to a University of Utah Health physical therapy doctor who specializes in treating people with neurologic conditions, one in every seventy people in the United States has a traumatic brain injury (TBI)-related disability. Living with the long-term consequences of any acquired brain injury can be extremely difficult and overwhelming for both the victim and those who care for the patient.
What are the types of head injuries?
There are several types of head injuries, and they include:
- Concussion: This is a mild traumatic brain injury caused by a bump, blow, or jolt to the head.
- Contusion: This is a bruise on the brain caused by a direct impact to the head.
- Skull Fracture: This is a break in one of the skull bones.
- Hematoma: a collection of blood outside of the blood vessels, typically caused by a ruptured blood vessel.
- Penetrating brain injury: A brain injury caused by an object penetrating the skull and entering the brain.
- Diffuse Axonal Injury: A brain injury caused by a severe rotational or shaking force, often seen in shaken baby syndrome and severe car accidents.
Can Head Injuries Cause Problems Later In Life?
The straightforward answer is yes. If you or someone you care about has suffered a head injury or a concussion, seek medical attention immediately because the consequences of such an injury can be severe.
A brain injury can be so severe that it causes loss of consciousness and, in severe cases, can impair a person’s physical, emotional, and cognitive abilities for weeks or months.
The Long-Term Effects of Mild Brain Injury
As previously stated, there are two types of brain injury: mild TBI and severe TBI, and each of these will have different effects depending on the patient’s head injuries.
The long-term consequences of mild traumatic brain injuries are determined by where the trauma occurred in the brain. Because the forehead area of the brain regulates problem-solving, reasoning, judgment, impulse control, and planning, damage to brain tissue in that area can result in inappropriate or risky behavior.
Trauma to the left side of the brain can have an impact on speech and logic. The individual may have difficulty communicating with and understanding others. If the injury occurs on the right side of the brain, it can result in difficulties processing visual information, apraxia, and neglect. There could also be issues with the ability to perform daily tasks.
Long-Term Effects Of Severe Traumatic Brain Injury
Severe TBI’s long-term effects are as follows:
- Physical Effects-These effects can affect a person’s quality of life and may include physical paralysis, sleeping disorders, seizures, chronic pain, loss of stamina, and hormonal changes. These may also include difficulty swallowing food and regulating body temperature.
- Effects on Vision: TBI may cause diplopia, vision loss, blurred vision, problems judging distance and telling colors apart, photophobia, and involuntary eye vision.
- Behavioural Effects-In this case, people who have TBI may suffer from a lack of motivation, they may also suffer from depression, aggression, irritability, denial, and many more fluctuating emotions.
- Sensory and perceptual effects-TBI can make people fail to tell the temperature, and they may also fail to tell if they are touched. Patients may also have trouble positioning their arms and legs properly. Overall, they may fail to understand and integrate the information they receive through their five senses.
- Cognitive Effects-Memory issues, concentration issues, and difficulty processing language are all possible side effects. They may speak slowly and become easily confused.
Long-Term Support
People who suffer from moderate or severe TBI need lifelong support, especially financially. Head trauma causes them to lose cognitive functioning, and in some cases, they may suffer from traumatic seizures and have a permanent disability. TBI patients lose the ability to work for themselves or carry out simple day-to-day tasks. That is why when a motor vehicle accident happens and an injury occurs, the victims need to get an attorney to represent them to make an accident claim from the insurance company.
Why You Should Hire an Attorney
After a brain injury, a person may have no noticeable symptoms, but later they may develop sleep disturbances and seizures. That’s why it’s advisable to get medical help and have a personal injury attorney analyze a small head injury.
Attorneys will handle the stress of negotiating with insurance companies while you focus on your recovery; they will accompany you through the evaluation process; and they will tell you the value of your claim from the first consultation. You may be able to obtain the compensation that will cover you or your loved ones for years in areas such as medical expenses and lost future earnings.
Why Choose Alpizar Law To Represent You
Alpizar Law Attorneys have a strong team of attorneys with a combined 65 years of experience; The team is local, so they understand their clients, their backgrounds, and the environment from which they come.
We have had tremendous success for many clients in the Palm Bay, Florida, area, recovering hundreds of millions of dollars in damage.
Alpizar Law’s Brevard County personal injury attorneys treat their clients with kindness and compassion, and whatever case they take on, they fight hard for the client to get the compensation that they deserve following an accident.
It is critical to have a local team fighting on your side, so contact Alpizar Law today if you have any further questions or want to file a brain injury claim.
