Each year in the United States, nearly 2 million emergency department visits, hospitalizations and deaths related to traumatic brain injury occur. This type of injury can easily occur as a result of an accident, such as a slip-and-fall accident or a car crash caused by another person’s negligence.
Suffering traumatic brain injury as a result of another person’s carelessness may unfortunately affect your long-term quality of life. Fortunately, you have the right to take action in the pursuit of justice.
Brain injury types
There are generally two types of brain injuries: open injuries and closed injuries. An open brain injury means that your skull has suffered a fracture. You could suffer this type of injury if your head makes direct contact with an object or surface that is hard.
A closed brain injury involves no fracture. However, it can still be more severe than an open brain injury because the brain may swell, and potentially fatal blood clots may form inside the skull. Whether a TBI is open or closed, the injury has the potential to cause the victim to lose consciousness, become paralyzed and even die.
Brain injury warning signs
In the aftermath of the accident, you may experience the following symptoms — indications that you have suffered a brain injury:
- Severe headache
- Unusual sluggishness and tiredness
- Dizziness and nausea
- Trouble recalling recent events
- Confusion
- Weakness and numbness on a side of your body
If you experience these symptoms, you should seek medical attention as soon as possible. This is true even if you feel fine otherwise, as the sooner you can address a brain injury, the better.
Your rights following an accident
After suffering any form of brain injury due to another party’s negligence, it is within your rights to file a personal injury claim against this party, seeking the reimbursement of financial damages.
A successfully fought claim could result in a significant monetary damage award, which can help you to cover your medical bills as well as the loss of wages if your brain injury kept you from returning to work. Monetary damages cannot undo the events resulting in your brain injury, but financial compensation can help alleviate your burdens in the wake of a traumatic accident.
