Brain Damage Lawyer Miami, FL
Common Causes of Brain Injuries
Brain injuries are one of the most serious types of accidents you can suffer in an accident. They can lead to cognitive, emotional, and even physical difficulties. Here are the most common types of accidents that can result in brain injuries.
- Car accidents. Car accidents occur every day in Florida and some of them can result in brain injuries. Motorists and passengers are more likely to suffer a brain injury if their head hits the steering wheel, glass or other objects during a car accident. The sudden force of a vehicle collision itself may cause brain injuries in some people..
- Medical malpractice. Believe it or not, brain injuries can also occur under a medical professional’s care. For example, if you are given too much anesthesia before a surgery, your brain may get denied oxygen, causing serious damage. This may be considered medical malpractice.
- Slip and fall accidents. Slip and fall accidents can occur just about anywhere, from grocery stores to parking lots. If you slip and fall and hit your head, you may suffer a brain injury.
- Construction sites. Construction sites are one of the most dangerous worksites. Workers can suffer brain injuries if they fall off an elevated surface or get struck in the head with an object.
- Assault. Brain injuries can also result from intentional violence. If someone hits a person on the head with a fist or other object, the person can suffer a brain injury.
Types of Brain Injuries
Before diving too deeply into the types of brain injuries that you can receive in an accident, it is important to make the distinction between acquired brain injuries (otherwise known as an ABI) and typical brain injuries that you think about because of accidents. An acquired brain injury is an injury to the brain since birth, which indicates you were born with it or acquired it soon after being born. Some well known causes of acquired brain injury are strokes, tumors, encephalitis, and a brain hemorrhage. These issues cause very similar symptoms and effects as traumatic brain injuries cause, but treating and coping with these types of injuries is very different from traumatic brain injury treatments.
Traumatic brain injuries, known as TBIs, are a common type of brain injury and really this term is used as an umbrella to cover any and all injuries to the brain. A traumatic brain injury is simply caused by trauma to the head and brain. However this type of injury can be caused by a lot of things, ranging from car accidents to slip and falls.
You may have a traumatic brain injury if you have a brief period where you are not conscious after a fall or an accident, or even if you just feel sick and dizzy after an accident. This type of injury is the most common of all brain injuries, and about 95% of all brain injuries are counted as traumatic brain injuries. You could obtain a traumatic brain injury by bumping your head on a door frame, falling, or being in an accident.
Severeity is decided based on the symptoms. A mild injury is just a brief period of unconscious behavior and perhaps feeling dizzy. A moderate head injury is going to be defined as losing your consciousness for anywhere from fifteen minutes to six hours, or having post-trauma amnesia for twenty-four hours after an accident. Someone with this type of brain injury may be in the hospital for observation and then released if no further complications happen. People with this type of injury are very likely to have residual symptoms such as migraines.
Severe head injuries mean that the patient has been unconscious for six hours or more, or is amnesiac for longer than twenty-four hours. They are going to require hospitalization and rehabilitation once they are considered to be stable enough to rehabilitate.
Remember that a TBI occurs when you hit your head hard enough to jostle your brain around and cause injury to the brain’s tissue itself. This causes swelling and other unsavory injuries to the soft tissue of your brain, which causes a variety of symptoms that are totally dependent upon the injury and the area of the brain that was injured.
Getting Compensation for a Brain Injury
If you suffered a brain injury because of someone else’s negligence, it is wise to speak to a brain damage lawyer in Miami, FL as soon as possible. Brain injuries can lead to long-term medical care and lost wages, and you deserve to be compensated for that. A lawyer can help you file a lawsuit against the negligent party and improve your chances of getting the compensation you need.
During your first consultation with a lawyer, he or she will likely have many questions about your case. For example, your lawyer may want to know what caused your brain injury and the symptoms you experienced afterward. He or she may also ask how your injury has affected your life thus far. If you have any documents pertaining to your injury, like medical records, don’t forget to bring them with you to your consultation.
Contact a brain damage lawyer in Miami, FL from the Law Offices of Needle & Ellenberg, P.A. for the next steps in seeking compensation for your brain injury.