When it comes to head injuries in America, car accidents are the number one culprit. A traumatic brain injury (TBI) from an auto accident is one of the most common causes of disability and death in the United States. More than 5 million people are living with disabilities and complications from head injuries. Another 50,000 people die every year from traumatic brain injuries and 230,000 are hospitalized, according to the CDC and Brainline.org.
Many times, TBI can be misdiagnosed and victims are forced to live with complications they don’t understand. If you’ve been involved in a car accident, even if it seems relatively minor, be sure to get checked out by a doctor.
WHAT IS A HEAD INJURY?
A traumatic brain injury is an injury to the brain, not of a congenital or degenerative nature, but caused by an external physical force. Such force could produce an altered or diminished state of consciousness, which results in an impairment of physical functioning or cognitive abilities, such as issues with walking. For example, you may need to re-learn how to walk all over again, which leads to months or years of physical therapy. It can also cause a disturbance of emotional or behavioral functioning. These injuries might be permanent or temporary and could cause total or partial psychosocial maladjustment or functional disability.
External physical force, as it’s referred to above, can consist of hitting your head on the airbag or steering wheel. The majority of head injuries are considered to be a closed injury, also known as a CHI (closed head injury). This means that you might not be able to actually see the injury, but the trauma inside the brain causes a number of different medical issues.
SYMPTOMS OF TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY
The symptoms that result from TBI could be cognitive, emotional, and physical. These symptoms do not happen to everyone that experiences a head injury. A person might deal with only one of these symptoms, while someone else may be affected by all of them. If you or a loved one was in an auto accident and are experiencing one of the following symptoms, you should be seen by a medical professional immediately:
- Slowed or slurred speech
- Double vision
- Loss of taste or smell
- Mood swings
- Impulsive and egocentric behaviors
- Easily agitated
- Migraines and headaches
- Balance issues
- Fatigue
- Seizures
- Anxiety
- Poor judgment and organization problems
- Communication issues
- Difficulty concentrating
- Short or long-term memory loss
- Muscle spasms
Contact Us if You’ve Suffered a Head Injury Due to a Car Accident
A traumatic brain injury can be very serious and negatively affect your life in many ways. Although a doctor may be able to help you recover physically, the experienced Philadelphia, Wilkes-Barre, and Scranton personal injury attorneys at Fellerman & Ciarimboli could help you recover financially. If you’ve suffered from TBI or any type of head injury as a result of a car accident, you may be entitled to compensation. Contact Fellerman & Ciarimboli today!
