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How Are Permanent Brain Injuries Proven?

brain injury

There are few injuries worse than a permanent brain injury. Whether caused by a car accident, truck crash, or medical mistake a permanent brain injury can make living life normally almost impossible. 

If you can prove that another party caused the brain injury, you could receive compensation in a personal injury lawsuit. But receiving compensation means proving that you or your loved one has a permanent brain injury and another party caused it. In this article, learn more about permanent brain injuries, and contact our experienced Schaumburg personal injury attorney for additional information and a consultation about your case.

What Is A Permanent Brain Injury?

A permanent brain injury, sometimes called a traumatic brain injury (TBI), is an injury that usually occurs from a violent jolt or blow to the head. In personal injury cases handled by our Schaumburg personal injury attorneys, permanent brain injuries often occur in motor vehicle, truck and motorcycle accidents, slip and fall accidents, sports collisions, explosive blasts, and medical malpractice cases. Severe brain injuries can cause many long-term or permanent problems that are costly.

If you or your relative have suffered a permanent brain injury, you could have expensive long-term care and rehabilitation requirements. When another person caused the accident and resulting injuries, one of our personal injury attorneys will work to prove negligence and hold the other party accountable.

How To Prove A Permanent Brain Injury

Whether our SJ Injury Law attorneys are negotiating a settlement with the at-fault insurance company or presenting the case to the jury, proving a permanent brain injury means starting at the beginning. Your attorney will need to show what happened in the accident that caused the injury and how and why. The attorney also will show how the accident caused your brain injury and how it affects your daily life.

For example, if you suffered a permanent brain injury in a car accident, documentation related to the mishap will be needed for legal proof. The police report can be vital because it may indicate how the crash happened, where the vehicles were located, how fast they were going, and their direction.

Our Schaumburg personal injury attorneys typically hire accident reconstruction experts to investigate the accident details and prove how it happened. The accident reconstruction experts may testify in court about the accident, how it happened, and who caused it. This testimony might prove that another driver did not yield and hit you head-on, causing your head to slam into the side window, which caused the brain injury.

Permanent Brain Injury Symptoms

There are many signs apparent when people have suffered a permanent brain injury. Some common symptoms are listed below, and your attorney will use your symptoms to prove you have a brain injury. But remember that only a doctor can diagnose that you have a brain injury:

  • Dizziness and headaches
  • Drowsiness and fatigue
  • Mood swings that are out of character
  • Loss of coordination
  • Loss of consciousness
  • Difficulty speaking or understanding speech
  • Convulsions or seizures
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Brain fog

It is essential to your case that your doctor document possible brain injury symptoms. This is why you should always seek medical treatment after any serious accident. In many cases, a seriously injured party may not get the medical attention they need. By the time they go to the ER, their injury has worsened, and their prognosis declines. Also, waiting to see a medical professional for a brain injury can limit your options when negotiating a settlement or filing a personal injury lawsuit.

Documentation And Medical Experts

The next part of proving a permanent brain injury is to rely on medical documents and experts to make the case. Your treating doctor, neurologist, and other medical professionals may be called to testify to prove your injury and how it is related to the accident. 

There are many ways that your doctors can diagnose your permanent brain injury. Documents and medical testimony are essential to prove that a brain injury occurred. Your medical professionals may discuss the tests they used to diagnose you, how you responded, and how the injury affects you.

Your doctors also could use the Glasgow Coma Scale to measure various types of functioning. They include the ability to speak, open your eyes, and move. A doctor can rate the responses you give and provide a score. The lower your score, the more serious the injury, and the more compensation you might be entitled to in a personal injury lawsuit.

Your personal injury attorney will rely heavily on your doctors’ testimony to prove your permanent brain injury. Insurance companies know that TBI claims can be costly. They may attempt to reject your injury claim and say you do not have a severe brain injury. The other party’s insurance company may also bring in its medical experts to suggest you are not as injured as you claim.

By asking your doctor, neurologist, and other medical professionals to testify, your attorney will try to prove your injuries are severe and related to the accident. This testimony on your behalf can make or break the value of the case.

Medical Tests That Can Prove A Permanent Brain Injury

Your attorney may also call one of your medical professionals to discuss imaging and tests that show the severity of your brain injuries. These tests could include a:

  • A CT scan uses X-rays to take a total picture of the brain. This test can show bleeding, bruised brain tissue, and other damage that may limit or even endanger your life.
  • MRI uses large magnets and radio waves to make images that are even more detailed than a CT scan.
  • Intracranial pressure monitoring uses a probe inside the skull to check the degree of brain swelling, which can be due to a permanent brain injury.

How A Permanent Brain Injury Is Rated

After your doctors discover your permanent brain injury, they will rate its severity. The range is from mild to severe, and the compensation you receive in a lawsuit can rise, the more serious the injury is:

Mild Brain Injury

A mild TBI usually causes short-term brain damage and is more treatable than other types. If you have a mild brain injury, you probably were not unconscious or out for a limited time. A mild TBI can lead to short-term memory loss that often lasts less than 24 hours.

Moderate Brain Injury

A moderate TBI leads to more brain damage than a mild brain injury. If you suffer a moderate TBI, you may have been unconscious for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours. You could have temporary memory loss that lasts up to seven days.

Severe Brain Injury

A severe TBI most damages the brain and can be permanent or fatal. If you or your loved one has a severe brain injury, you probably were unconscious for more than a day and your memory loss could be over a week.

Proving Negligence

It is one thing to prove that you have a permanent brain injury, but it is another to prove that someone else caused it. To win your personal injury case, a preponderance of the evidence must show that another person or entity caused the accident. Your attorney will use his skills and experience to prove negligence, which has four parts:

Duty of Care

Duty of care refers to our legal duty to avoid harming others. All people have a duty of care to obey the law and behave reasonably using ordinary care. If someone violates the law or engages in behavior that others know is dangerous, they have breached their duty of care.

Breach In Duty

A breach in the duty of care refers to the action or lack of action that broke the rules. For instance, if another party ran a red light in Chicago and slammed into your vehicle, they breached their duty of care to drive safely. Your attorney may rely on eyewitness testimony, traffic video, or black box data to prove the accident occurred.

Proximate Cause Of Injury

This means that your injuries are related to the breach of duty of care. If you suffered a brain injury after a car accident, your attorney will try to prove the link between the breach and your damages.

Damages

To obtain compensation in a brain injury lawsuit, it is not enough to prove that you are injured, and someone else caused it. You also must have suffered damages. Many personal injury lawsuits include medical bills, lost wages, loss of enjoyment of life, pain and suffering, and more. Someone with a permanent brain injury may have significant economic and non-economic damages. Your attorney will fight hard to prove the amount of damages you suffered to maximize your potential compensation.

Speak To A Schaumburg Personal Injury Lawyer

You may face years of medical bills and rehabilitation if you or a loved one suffers a brain injury. Plus, you or your loved one may never be the same again. However, a legal novice should not attempt to prove the brain injury and someone’s negligence. If you suffered a brain injury because of another party’s intentional or negligent act, you should fight for justice today by retaining a lawyer. Contact our Schaumburg personal injury attorney at SJ Injury Law at (847) 434-3555 to learn if your case could result in compensation.

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What Are The Most Common Causes Of Traumatic Brain Injuries?

brain injuries

The CDC reports that traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are a significant cause of death and disability in the United States. There were an estimated 64,000 TBI-related fatalities in the US in 2020, and many thousands more were permanently injured. When someone’s negligence causes the TBI, it may be possible to obtain substantial compensation in a lawsuit.

This article will teach you the most common causes of traumatic brain injuries. If you or a loved one need legal assistance, the Schaumburg personal injury lawyers at Claim Your Justice can help with your TBI case.

Construction Accidents

Construction workers are at one of the highest risks for traumatic brain injury. This is because construction sites are more hazardous than many workplaces, such as offices and retail stores. There is a lot of heavy machinery and workplaces at heights. As a result, the construction area environment lends itself more readily to severe injuries, including head trauma. Common causes of TBIs at construction sites include:

  • Falls: Falls from height were responsible for at least 50% of all job-related TBIs last year. The CDC states that common causes of falls and TBIs at construction sites are falls from roofs, ladders, and scaffolds.
  • Vehicle accidents: Traveling to and from a construction site puts you at a higher risk of accidents. There also is vehicle traffic on site, a common cause of traumatic brain injuries. Construction zones also contain many obstructions and large objects that make it harder to spot danger.
  • Object strike: Construction materials are often being moved around on construction sites. For example, metal beams and other building materials must be moved. These activities put workers at higher risk of injury.

Workers at construction sites can reduce their chances of injury by using fall protection protocol, always wearing a hard hat, and being aware of one’s surroundings.

Falls

The CDC reports that falls due to tripping and slipping accidents can often cause traumatic brain injuries. It is estimated that more than 1 million Americans are admitted to ERs every year because of significant injuries from slip-and-fall accidents.

TBIs are one of the severest types of injuries in falls. TBIs in falls can range from mild to severe and may cause severe disability for the accident victim. Some of the reasons slip-and-fall accidents lead to severe injuries such as TBIs are:

  • Slippery floors
  • Uneven sidewalks and other walking surfaces
  • Debris and clutter
  • Poor lighting
  • Ice and snow
  • Stairway accidents
  • Loose electrical wires and cords

Auto Accidents

Motor vehicle crashes cause many traumatic brain injuries annually. During a crash, you will probably be subjected to severe, sudden, and violent movements. This can slam your head into the steering wheel, windshield, dashboard, or window. Also, the sudden movements can slam the brain into the inside of the skull, also causing injury.

A direct blow to your head in a car accident can bruise the brain and damage the delicate internal blood vessels and tissue. Note that your head trauma will differ depending on where the vehicle was struck. For example, if your car is T-boned on the right side, the left side of your head may slam into the driver’s side window. Most cars now have side-impact airbags, but these violent collisions still frequently cause TBIs.

Note that the skull is only about 1/4” thick, so a violent impact in a car accident can cause a severe and catastrophic head injury. If it happens, you will need ample compensation for your recovery.

Medical Malpractice

Medical errors can lead to traumatic brain injuries. One of the most common is an anesthesia error. These mistakes can cause a brain injury in these situations:

  • Dosage error: The anesthesiologist may provide too much anesthesia to the patient, who may stop breathing or go into cardiac arrest. Both problems can interrupt blood flow to the brain, which can cause severe brain damage. A common issue with dosage errors is damage to the area of the brain that controls vision, potentially leading to blindness.
  • Failure to monitor the patient: When a patient is under anesthesia, they must be carefully monitored. If not, there can be irreversible brain damage.
  • Failure to administer oxygen: If the patient receives the incorrect oxygen concentration, there can be brain damage.
    Other medical errors may lead to traumatic brain injuries, as well:
  • Medication errors: Giving a patient the wrong or incorrect amount of medication can cause seizures, an allergic reaction, or a heart problem that can reduce blood flow to the brain.
  • Surgical mistakes: A mistake during surgery can affect oxygen flow. But errors during a brain procedure can cause scarring, blood clots, and other damage.
  • Failure to diagnose: If the doctor does not diagnose a serious condition and it worsens, it can lead to a severe medical error. Sometimes, these mistakes can cause brain damage.

Some possible brain injuries from medical mistakes may affect your memory, thinking, communicating, balancing and sensation, and emotions. Some patients never recover full brain function in a medical malpractice case.

Assault

The last case type of traumatic brain injury is assault or physical violence. There is always a chance of a head injury when there is assault or violence. For example, a crime victim could suffer a head injury in an assault, carjacking, mugging, fighting, choking, and more. In addition, some evidence indicates that women and children domestic violence victims may be at a higher risk of traumatic brain injuries.

Additional causes of TBIs in assault and violence cases are:

  • Blows to the head: A kick or punch to the head can cause a brain injury. You also could be shoved to the ground and slam your head on the pavement. Other blows to the head that may trigger a TBI are being shot with a gun, hit with a club or bat, or slammed against a wall.
  • Coup and contrecoup injuries: These injuries cause brain bruises when violent shaking occurs in some assault cases. For example, shaken baby syndrome can cause coup and contrecoup injuries on the front and back of the brain.
  • Anoxia: This injury happens when oxygen flow is reduced to the brain. This often occurs in a violent encounter when a person is choked or smothered.

How Can My Lawyer Help If I Have A Traumatic Brain Injury?

If you suffer a traumatic brain injury because of someone’s negligence, a Claim Your Justice attorney can help you pursue compensation. You may be eligible for funds for your medical bills, lost earnings, pain and suffering, and mental anguish. In addition, your Claim Your Justice injury attorney will investigate the incident to determine if another party was liable for the injury.

Your lawyer will also oversee all correspondence with the defense, keep track of your damages and expenses, and negotiate with the insurance company for a fair settlement. The attorney may take the case to court if the claims adjuster does not offer the compensation you deserve. Then, your TBI case will be decided by the judge or jury.

If the insurance company makes a settlement offer, your attorney will inform you whether it is a fair offer. If it is not, the attorney will pursue the case in court.

How Much Money Can You Get In A TBI Settlement?

Every traumatic brain injury differs, but these cases often have a high settlement value. Some online legal sources report that the average brain injury case results in excess of $100,000 in settlement. However, some TBI cases can be settled for hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars.

The medical expenses to treat a TBI can be financially devastating. You may need surgery, imaging tests, medications, physical therapy, and months or years of rehabilitation. Your personal injury lawyer will review your medical bills and medical records to obtain a settlement that reflects your past and future medical needs.

Next, a severe brain injury can leave you unable to work in your chosen profession. Or, you may be unable to work at all. Compensation for lost earning capacity can compensate you for being unable to make a living for months or years into the future.

Pain and suffering are often one of the most significant parts of a brain injury settlement. It is common for TBI victims to suffer chronic pain and terrible headaches. No matter how much pain you have from your brain injury, you should be entitled to ample compensation for your physical and mental suffering. Details that you provide to your personal injury attorney of the pain you experience will help in maximizing the value of your case.

Reduced quality of life is another area you may deserve compensation for in a TBI case. Having a brain injury can leave you immobile or unable to communicate. Perhaps you can no longer enjoy your previous hobbies or the job you trained for.

If you lost a loved one to a traumatic brain injury, you also could be entitled to compensation in a wrongful death lawsuit. For instance, you could receive compensation for loss of companionship, lost earning capacity, funeral expenses, and the deceased’s suffering during death.

Contact Our Schaumburg Personal Injury Lawyer Now

Did you or a loved one suffer a traumatic brain injury in the Schaumburg region? Did the accident and injury happen near I-290 or IL-53 in any other area in Chicago? Our personal injury lawyers know how complex and difficult traumatic brain injuries can be. You could be entitled to substantial compensation if someone’s negligence caused the accident. Contact Claim Your Justice now at 847-434-3555.