Traumatic Brain Injury

Frequently asked questions about Traumatic Brain Injury

What kind of symptoms and aftereffects occur with traumatic brain injury?
Symptoms can include:

• Coma, lengthy period of unconscious
• Memory loss
• Personality changes
• Trauma induced Seizures
• Impaired cognitive skills (problems in reading or writing)
• Impaired concentration
• Impaired speech, vision, or hearing
• Sexual dysfunction
• Interpersonal relationship problems
• Loss of bowel and bladder control
• Confusion
• Dizziness
• Depression
• Anxiety

How are traumatic brain injuries diagnosed?
For decades, people have suffered concussions and brain injuries which were not properly diagnosed. With the development of CT scans which visualize tissue in the brain and MRI, magnetic resonance imaging, doctors now have technologies that deliver far more information about brain function. Injuries that would have gone undiagnosed before the advent of these technologies now can be clearly seen on a screen. The traumatized area of the brain can be identified and an appropriate diagnosis made.

Why does a person need be monitored after a head injury?
In many of our cases involving traumatic brain injury, our personal injury lawyers have seen that a direct impact to the head can result in a fracture or internal bleeding visible on a CT scan or MRI. Damage may also result afterward from brain swelling or bleeding in and around the skull. This evolving potential for damage is the reason that following a traumatic head injury, doctors will recommend monitoring consciousness for days afterward.

Are there brain injuries that CT scans and MRI’s don’t pick up?
Because the brain is so complex and sensitive, traumatic injuries can result in brain damage that even MRI and CT scans fail to detect. After the Vietnam War, research neuropsychologists working with thousands of patients developed neuropsychological testing that could evaluate very specific brain functions. Traumatic brain injury lawyers know that a skilled neuropsychologist can help identify deficits caused by TBI which escaped diagnosis by MRI and CT.

What are the unique difficulties the come with mild TBI?
A person with a mild head injury faces a difficult situation. The mirror tells them they look normal. Their friends will say you seem absolutely fine to me. If they agree with their friends and assume that they are fine, they will continue to experience problems they feel they should handle, and can’t. They may become angry, frustrated, and discouraged, and risk ending up severely depressed. Yet people facing these injuries want to resume a normal life. Our traumatic brain injury lawyers understand these feelings and have found that if a person is accurately diagnosed by the neurologist and neuropsychologist, and understands their dysfunctions, they are more able to obtain the care they need in order to lead a more normal life.

How can neuropsychological testing help with a mild TBI?
Neuropsychological testing is a valid and respected discipline that has proved extremely helpful for people with mild head injuries. When a TBI goes undiagnosed a person often develops secondary problems with depression because neither they nor those around them understand that they have suffered a brain injury. Enhanced ability to diagnose head injuries holds the promise that instead of sinking into chronic depression, a person can learn positive means of dealing with their injury.

What can we expect from a Casey Gerry attorney when I or my loved one has suffered a mild or moderate TBI?
Our San Diego traumatic brain injury lawyers’ experience in representing mild and moderate head injury victims has been to couple a positive attitude toward our clients’ future and at the same time to seek medical evaluation and neuropsychological testing to comprehend the full impact of the injury so that we can take the necessary steps to protect our clients’ rights.

Why does Casey Gerry work so closely with doctors?
Head injuries are not cookie-cutter cases; every head injury is unique. Although we use MRI's, CT scans and neuropsychological testing to evaluate what brain functions have been compromised, a full appreciation of the injury does not occur until we understand entirely the impact of those dysfunctions on the person’s life. This requires us to work closely with the treating doctors and to get to know our clients extremely well by understanding the life they led before their traumatic injury.

How can neuropsychological testing help with a lawsuit?
A knowledgeable traumatic brain injury attorney can refer a client to a neuropsychologist, who can identify problems with brain functioning and make recommendations for the injured person how to deal with the residual deficits they face. Responsible traumatic brain injury attorneys have used these findings to pursue successful case resolution for clients who have suffered TBI’s.

Can neuropsychological testing help in planning my future after a TBI?
Casey Gerry's San Diego traumatic brain injury attorneys collaborate closely with psychologists who work with our clients in to understand the impact of their injuries, and plan for their futures. In representing a person who has suffered a head injury, our traumatic brain injury lawyers commit not to only to understand the medical consequences of the injury, but to appreciate from our clients’ perspective what they have gone through and what they face in the future. Only then can we properly advise them about the decisions they need to make as they go forward with their case.

Can amusement park rides cause TBI?
Attention has recently focused on violent amusement park rides as a cause of closed-head injuries. Critics contend that riders’ brains are being rattled around in their skulls, causing brain bleeds and tears that can result in permanent damage or death. In New Jersey, engineers determined that brain injuries -- along with a rash of spine and neck injuries -- are occurring from jolting, jerking rides with rapid changes in direction, and speeds in excess of 80 mph. The state of New Jersey set the nation's first legal limits on the gravitational force that amusement park rides can produce.