Delray Beach Brain Injury Lawyer
Like other specific types of personal injury, brain injury is not actually its own category of personal injury. That is because the causes of brain injury are the same as causes of other personal injuries. However, because brain injuries impact life in a way that other injuries do not, if you are seeking damages for a brain injury you need an attorney with experience handling brain injury cases. Our Delray Beach Brain Injury Lawyers have the expertise you need to get you a settlement or judgment that helps make you whole after a brain injury.
What You Need to Know
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) refers to a variety of different injuries to the brain that can include a broad spectrum of symptoms and disabilities. Traumatic brain injury is usually the result of an acute event, such as a bump, blow, jolt, or other type of injury to the head. These injuries can be temporary or they can lead to permanent brain damage or death.
The most familiar type of TBI is a concussion. The symptoms of a concussion include: headache, neck pain, ringing in the ears, dizziness, tiredness, and nausea. For years, concussions were treated like minor injuries, but there is a growing body of evidence that even though the immediate symptoms of concussions may disappear, concussions can cause lasting brain damage. This is especially true if a person experiences multiple concussions.
More severe TBIs may have the same symptoms as concussions, as well as: worsening or lingering headache, continued nausea, convulsions, seizures, inability to stay awake or to wake from sleep; dilated pupils, slurred, speech, weakness or numbness in the limbs.
Long-term effects of TBIs can become very serious. People can lose the ability to walk, to speak, and even to breathe. For years, TBIs were considered very treatment-resistant, but there are several promising new therapies that can offer some recovery for victims. However, many of these treatments are very expensive and may not be covered by traditional medical insurance, making it particularly important to get financial compensation for your TBI.
The severity of a TBI can only be assessed by health professionals, who use a variety of different tests and exams to determine how severe a TBI is and the long-term medical prognosis for those who have suffered a TBI. If you have suffered a serious TBI, you need emergency medical treatment. If you believe that you are experiencing later onset of TBI symptoms, then you need to have an immediate medical assessment. This is critical because some of the subtler symptoms of TBI include: changes in thinking, changes in sensation, changes in language, changes in emotion, and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.
TBIs are generally acute injuries. These can be sudden impacts or the movement of the brain inside the skull. In other words, you can experience a TBI without having anything impact your head. A TBI immediately disrupts brain function, but the symptoms of it may not be immediately apparent. In fact, it is not unusual for the symptoms of a TBI to appear and/or escalate in the days or weeks following the injury. These symptoms can appear and then disappear or they can have a lifelong impact.
If you or a loved one has suffered a TBI, the biggest priority is to get the appropriate medical care. If your TBI was caused as the result of someone else’s negligence or intentional behavior, then your second priority needs to be securing great legal representation. This is because, perhaps more than other types of injuries, the ongoing medical care for TBIs can be extremely expensive. In fact, it is not unusual for TBI treatment to quickly exceed lifetime health insurance limits. Therefore, having compensation from a legal settlement or judgment can be particularly critical for TBI victims.
The lawyers at Law Firm as very familiar with brain injuries and with personal injury law. We offer free consultations to discuss your case with you. However, even if you choose to go with a different law firm, we want to make sure you pick a lawyer who is familiar with brain injuries in particular and personal injury, in general. That is because your attorney has to be able to prove all of the elements of a personal injury before establishing the specific damages that are related to the type of injury that you suffered.
TBI frequently overlaps with other types of personal injuries. TBI victims may also experience spinal cord injuries. In addition, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), TBIs are the third-largest cause of injury-related death in the United States. These deaths may happen immediately after the triggering incident or may occur as a complication of worsening TBIs. Symptoms to be aware of when a potential brain injury has occurred include: imbalance; confusion; headaches; dizziness; numbness; blurred vision or a loss of vision; hearing difficulties or hearing loss; vomiting; nausea; difficulty speaking; difficulty breathing; difficulty swallowing; irregular or slow pulse; slow breathing; changes in attention span; irregular pupil span; loss of consciousness; increase in blood pressure; and any type of fluids coming from the ears or nose. Many people are aware that they need to look for these symptoms in the immediate aftermath of an accident, but may not be aware that they can appear days or weeks after an accident or that they may onset rapidly or gradually.
While any type of personal injury could be linked to a TBI, there are certain types of personal injuries that are more likely to result in TBI. Automobile accidents and slip and falls, especially among elderly people, are significant causes of TBIs. However, some causes of TBIs are more difficult to detect. For example, medical malpractice can be a cause of TBI, but may not be immediately apparent. Likewise, birth injuries, such as the incorrect use of forceps during child birth, may be responsible for a TBI. What further complicates this issue is that TBIs may occur in the course of medical treatment or childbirth absent any evidence of negligence or malpractice. The South Florida brain injury attorneys at Law Firm can assess your situation and determine whether the circumstances surrounding the brain injury give rise to a claim of negligence.
If you or a loved one have a TBI, you are not alone. By 2020, it is projected that over one-quarter of a million people in Florida will be dealing with a TBI-related disability. While no one ever wants to have a TBI, there is no doubt that having the compensation necessary for rehabilitation, treatment, or care that is required because of the injury can make a tremendous difference. Especially in cases of severe TBI, the victim may require round-the-clock-care for some portion of the recovery period, if not for a lifetime. Victims and their families are usually not financially prepared to deal with an injury of that severity.
Contact Our Delray Beach Brain Injury Lawyers
At Demand the Limits, our team of Delray Beach brain injury attorneys have the experience you need to guide and support you as adjust to your new normal. Please contact us today for a free consultation, so that we can explain how we can help you and your family in your recovery.