Blunt Force Injuries
The injuries that someone can suffer in a traumatic accident vary widely in their severity. While some people might escape an auto accident without a single scratch, other people can sustain life-threatening injuries. One of these is traumatic brain injury (TBI). For those who do not know, a TBI develops following a blow to the head that adversely impacts the function of the brain. These can lead to lifelong complications that family members and friends have to learn how to handle. A blow to the head can be categorized as either a blunt traumatic brain injury or a penetrating traumatic brain injury. Unfortunately, these injuries are actually quite common. Based on statistics that have been published by the American Speech Hearing and Language Association:
- Annually, more than 1.7 million people in the United States have to live with the consequences of a traumatic brain injury
- TBIs are listed as a contributing factor in about a third of all deaths that develop due to trauma or injury
- Elderly and toddlers are among the most likely age groups to suffer a TBI
- Between the years 2001 and 2010, the rates of traumatic brain injuries rose by more than 50 percent
Clearly, traumatic brain injuries are serious and need to be addressed. This starts with understanding why and how these TBIs occur. Often, traumatic brain injuries are secondary to a blunt impact. What does this mean and how does this occur?
Blunt Versus Penetrating Trauma
There are two common ways that someone could sustain a traumatic brain injury. They can have different impacts on someone’s neurological function, so it is important to understand the difference. These are:
- Blunt Trauma: This refers to an impact that someone sustains to their skull which does not break the surface of the skin.
- Penetrating Trauma: In this injury mechanism, the impact breaks the surface of the skin and damages the skull or the brain tissue underneath.
Even though a blunt traumatic brain injury does not break the surface of the skin, it can still cause serious damage to the tissue underneath. How is a blunt traumatic brain injury sustained and what are the consequences?
Mechanisms of a Blunt Traumatic Brain Injury
A blunt blow to the head can be sustained in numerous ways. All of these have the potential to cause serious brain damage which might impact someone for the rest of their life. Some of the common mechanisms include:
Auto Accidents: In a car accident, the car stops short or changes momentum quickly. Even though the body is restrained, the head is not. This means that someone could hit their head on the steering wheel, window, or dashboard, leading to a head injury.
Sports: Contact sports have occupied the media spotlight a lot in recent months. Whether it is football, soccer, basketball, or lacrosse, people can bang their heads together.
Slip and Fall Injuries: Everyone has fallen down at some point, and most people try to brace their impact with their hands. Unfortunately, some people can hit their head on the ground. This can lead to a serious, life-threatening brain injury.
Differentiating The Types of Blunt Brain Injuries
A blunt blow to the head can lead to several types of common brain injuries. Some of these include:
- Concussions
- Cerebral contusions
- Intracerebral hemorrhages
- Skull fractures
- Various types of hematomas
Many people make full recoveries following these serious injuries. In other cases, people could suffer long-term consequences. It is important to diagnose these injuries quickly so that they can be treated appropriately. Often, this requires imaging scans such as CT scans or MRIs. For this reason, people who suffer a blow to the head need to seek medical care as quickly as possible. Where else should families turn for help?
Contacting a Personal Injury Attorney
Traumatic brain injuries vary in their severity which creates a lot of uncertainty for the future. This impacts not only the individual who suffered the injury but also everyone around them. Therefore, it is important for everyone to know that help is available. Meeting with a traumatic brain injury attorney can be helpful. Some of the ways that a legal professional can provide assistance include:
- Reviewing the accident records to make sure that details have not been overlooked
- Speaking with professional accident engineers to recreate exactly what happened at the scene
- Pursuing damages related to their neurological damage, pain, and suffering
- Taking the case to court, if needed
Do not hesitate to ask for help following a serious injury. Speak with an experienced Turlock brain injury attorney. You and your family members could be deserving of a financial reward.
Turlock Brain Injury Lawyer
I’m Ed Smith, a Turlock brain injury lawyer. If you have been injured, or if a family member has suffered a blunt traumatic brain injury in an accident, and need the guidance of an experienced injury lawyer, call me at (209) 227-1931 or (800) 404-5400 for free and friendly advice.
I am a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum in California. We are made up of some of the top-rated trial lawyers in the United States. All of the members have earned million-dollar case verdicts for earlier clients.
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Blunt Traumatic Brain Injury: Autoaccident.com
Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons
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