Your Guide to Traumatic Brain Injury Compensation Claims

It is human nature to protect your head. Our survival instincts are hardwired with an understanding that the threat of head injury is never far away. It’s no secret that this kind of traumatic event can be life-altering. 

The brain is the center of the nervous system and controls all the human body’s major and minor functions. Any damage to this complex organ may result in difficulty performing everyday tasks, memory loss, and many life-altering conditions.

After a blow to the head, injuries can range from a mild concussion to traumatic brain injury that results in permanent cognitive impairment. Contact sports, car collisions, slip-and-fall accidents, and even attacks can cause these injuries. 

Sometimes, freak accidents happen to unsuspecting victims. Other times, a brain injury results from an intentional and illegal act of force. Most often, this type of injury occurs in the gray area, where responsibility is unclear.

Though we cannot prevent the worst from happening, at Adamson Ahdoot LLP, we match all our clients with a highly qualified lawyer who has the expertise to handle cases of brain injuries. 

What are the Common Symptoms of Brain Injury?

Annually in the United States, over 200,000 people fall victim to brain injury. When a brain injury occurs, there are a few tell-tale signs. The symptoms can range from mild to severe.

Mild symptoms of brain injuries may include: 

• Headache
• Nausea and/or vomiting
• Loss of consciousness, including only a few seconds
• No loss of consciousness, but marked confusion or dizziness
• Fatigue, difficulty staying awake or increased drowsiness
• Slurred speech or difficulty recalling words
• Blurred vision
• Sensitivity to light or sound
• Bad taste in the mouth
• Ringing in the ears
• Difficulty smelling
• Insomnia
• Loss of balance
• Concentration issues
• Mood swings
• Increased feelings of depression or anxiety

Severe injuries may include the following symptoms:

• Chronic headache
• Ongoing nausea and/or vomiting
• Loss of consciousness for more than a few minutes
• Loss of coordination
• Seizures
• Dilated pupils in one or both eyes
• Numbness in fingers and toes
• Increased irritability
• Difficulty or inability to wake from sleep
• Ongoing confusion

The onset of these symptoms can be sudden or delayed. If you’ve hit your head, seek medical attention as quickly as possible. 

What Are the Types of Traumatic Brain Injuries?

A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a type of acquired brain injury that is not congenital, hereditary, degenerative or brought about by birth trauma. 

These injuries may be caused by assaults, falls, sports injuries, or motor accidents. Below are the types of traumatic brain injuries based on their severity as determined by a brain MRI or head CT:

Severe TBI

People with a severe TBI lose consciousness for more than six hours or over one full day. Individuals with this type of injury may have significant changes visible in their brain MRI or head scan.

Moderate TBI

Individuals with this condition will experience confusion and loss of consciousness for more than 30 minutes, but less than one day. Confusion may remain for at least a week.

Mild Concussion

The most common type of TBI is a concussion. Out of all TBIs that occur annually, around three out of four cases are diagnosed with this condition. 

Individuals who suffer from this condition feel dazed or lose unconscious for less than 30 minutes. They may also feel confused and experience difficulty with memory for one day.

Uncomplicated and Complicated TBI

For uncomplicated TBIs, the CT scan and brain MRI results are normal. Meanwhile, complicated TBIs reveal changes in the head, such as bleeding.

Closed and Open TBI

Often, TBIs are closed, meaning that the blow or jolt to the head did not penetrate the skull. But the impact may injure the brain, causing swelling.

On the other hand, an open TBI occurs when a foreign object penetrates the brain.

 If broken glass, a bullet, or a knife goes through the skull, it could damage brain tissue. 

What are the Common Causes of Traumatic Brain Injuries?

Children, young adults, seniors, and males of any age make up most of the statistics on traumatic brain injuries. Most often, traumatic brain injury is caused by blunt force trauma or a direct blow to the head. 

As mentioned above, these injuries can range from mild to severe and are life-altering. There are a variety of factors that determine the severity of a brain injury. 

Common Causes of Brain Injury Include:

• Slip and fall accidents: This can include falling from a roof or ladder, tripping down a flight of stairs, and slipping in the bathroom or other places
• Auto accidents: Pedestrians and other drivers can suffer traumatic injuries after a car accident
• Violence: Intentional acts of violence, even without weapons, are a common cause of head injury
• Sports injuries: Contact sports, and other high-impact sports can cause mild concussions and other head injuries
• Explosions or combat-related injury: Military personnel can incur injury from bomb blasts and other explosions

What to Do After a Brain Injury?

Someone diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury may feel powerless, especially if they feel someone else is responsible. In cases of drunk driving accidents, slip and fall accidents from wet or slippery flooring, or defective products resulting in traumatic brain injury, you may be entitled to compensation. 

Here’s what you need to do after getting a head injury from an accident:

Seek Medical Treatment Immediately

It’s important to seek treatment for your head injury, regardless of whether you think it’s severe or not. This ensures you receive the proper treatment for your condition and helps build your personal injury case. 

Make sure to keep track of all your medical records, such as receipts, tests, scans, and prescriptions. These documents should be thoroughly collected and located in one convenient spot, so you can access them when you’re ready to make a traumatic brain injury claim.

Collect Information at the Scene of the Accident

If you’re able to, it’s important that you collect as much information about the incident as you can. Witnesses may also help you get a clearer picture of what happened. 

The following are some questions you should be able to answer based on details gathered at the accident scene:

• How did the injury happen?
• Who was the other party involved?
• Who was responsible for the accident?
• Did the other individual violate their duty of care to you at the time of the accident?

Seek Legal Representation 

There are many things to consider before filing a brain injury claim. But a brain injury lawyer may help you navigate the complexities of the legal system. 

They can help you build a solid case and guide you through the process of filing a personal injury claim, so you can receive the compensation you deserve.

How Much Compensation Do You Get for Traumatic Brain Injury?

There is no standard value for brain injury compensation. But generally, it may range from thousands to millions of dollars, depending on the complexity of your case. 

Many factors influence the value of your brain injury compensation claims. These factors include the type of accident you endured and other health conditions or complications acquired from the injuries. 

Furthermore, seeking medical treatment for your TBI will increase your medical expenses and affect the outcome of your lawsuit. 

Calculating the costs of brain injury compensation will also depend on your other incurred losses related to the accident, such as lost wages and temporary or permanent disability due to the injury.

Why Choose Adamson Ahdoot?

With more than 100 years of combined legal experience under our belts, our team at Adamson Ahdoot is more than ready to help you with your personal injury case, whether you’re dealing with work-related injuries or animal bites. We strive to help you get the compensation you deserve.

Our skilled and compassionate team of Los Angeles brain injury lawyers has the experience to handle your case and provide competent and assertive representation in the courtroom. 

Hire a Brain Injury Lawyer from Adamson Ahdoot

Even though we cannot prevent the worst from happening, at Adamson Ahdoot LLP, we match all our clients with highly qualified lawyers with the expertise to handle cases of brain injuries. 

We know the legal process can be daunting, so we strive to be approachable and empathetic. Our team of brain injury lawyers will study your case thoroughly so that you can focus on moving forward with your life while we focus on getting the justice you deserve.

Call us at (800) 310-1606 today to schedule your free case evaluation. We offer free consultations in English or Spanish.