Sustaining a traumatic brain injury from a Springfield accident caused by a careless or negligent person can leave you both frustrated and overwhelmed. You were likely minding your own business and then, in a mere instant, your life was changed all because another person was not acting in a safe, responsible manner. Traumatic brain injuries—like spinal cord injuries and other catastrophic injuries—can be very difficult to recover from. Many traumatic brain injury victims are never fully able to return to their former life because the injury has affected them so dramatically. Traumatic brain injuries can be the result of an automobile accident, a slip and fall, a fall on a construction site, or from a criminal act. When you are dealing with a traumatic brain injury, you need a strong advocate in your corner. You need someone who fully understands the ramifications of a traumatic brain injury and who will fight zealously on your behalf for proper medical treatment and a settlement that will cover your damages. A Finney Injury Law Springfield traumatic brain injury attorney can be that advocate, helping you through this difficult time with knowledge, skill, and compassion.
Our attorneys understand that your medical bills may be staggering and that you may require speech, physical, or occupational therapy, long-term medical care, assistive technology, residential care, custodial care, and supportive care. You may have a complete loss of future earning capacity or may have a loss of earnings during your rehabilitation period.
The high medical cost of a TBI can leave you and your family struggling to pay your medical expenses, even if you have health insurance. At Finney Injury Law, we work on your behalf to ensure a full and fair settlement. Finney Injury Law has an exemplary reputation because of our ability to secure settlements and verdicts that fully cover our clients’ damages.
Overview of Traumatic Brain Injuries
A violent blow or jolt to the head or body is the usual cause of a traumatic brain injury. An object that pierces the skull and goes through brain tissue—like a bullet—can also result in a traumatic brain injury. When you experience a mild traumatic brain injury, the cells in your brain are only affected temporarily. The brain may experience mild swelling, which then diminishes until your brain is back to normal. When you have a more severe traumatic brain injury, your brain may be seriously bruised, bleeding, and brain tissues are torn. A severe brain injury can cause long-term complications that are difficult to overcome—or even death.
A mild concussion generally causes no loss of consciousness or a loss of consciousness lasting only a few seconds. Mild concussions can cause headaches, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, speech problems, and loss of balance. The victim of a mild concussion may also experience temporary blurry vision, ringing in the ears, a metallic taste in the mouth, and sensitivity to light and sound. Difficulty sleeping or sleeping more than normal are also symptoms of a mild concussion, and all these symptoms can be expected to diminish over a few weeks, with the victim back to normal within a month or so.
A moderate to severe traumatic brain injury can include all the symptoms of a mild concussion, along with the following: a persistent headache that steadily worsens, loss of consciousness from minutes to hours, dilated pupils, clear fluids draining from the ears or nose, seizures or convulsions, an inability to fully wake from sleep, numbness or tingling in the toes and fingers, loss of coordination, slurred speech, profound confusion, agitation or other unusual behavior, disorders of consciousness and coma.
Falls from a height or slip-and-fall accidents can result in a brain injury, as can a vehicle-related collision. Those on bicycles, motorcycles, or those involved in a truck accident are the most likely to sustain a brain injury. Bicyclists and motorcyclists have virtually no protection when hit by a vehicle, other than a helmet. Pedestrians are equally vulnerable to brain injuries when hit by a car. Those involved in truck accidents are also more likely to sustain a brain injury by virtue of the size difference between an 80,000-pound fully loaded truck and a 3,000-pound passenger vehicle.
Other causes of brain injuries include general violence, sports, and military combat. Children from newborns to four years old, young adults between the ages of 15 and 24, adults over the age of 60, and males in any group are the most likely to receive a traumatic brain injury. Complications of a severe brain injury include seizures (recurrent seizures are called post-traumatic epilepsy), fluid buildup in the brain, blood vessel damage, frequent, severe headaches, and infections when there are penetrating wounds.
Vertigo can also occur among those with a traumatic brain injury and can be a long-term symptom. Perhaps just as debilitating as the physical symptoms of a traumatic brain injury are the cognitive deficits including memory loss, an inability to reason and learn, a lack of judgment, and an inability to concentrate. Simple tasks like reading, writing, and communicating can become extremely difficult following a severe traumatic brain injury.
How Much Compensation Can You Get from a Traumatic Brain Injury?
Several different factors will determine your exact compensation. The first is whether fault can be clearly established in your case. Was the person who caused your traumatic brain injury clearly at fault? If it was a driver, did they violate a law or rule of the road? Was the driver clearly careless or reckless? If your brain injury resulted from a fall, did it occur on another’s property and was it caused by a clearly hazardous issue that should have been corrected? If liability is clear, the next issue is the extent of your damages. How long will you require medical treatment for your traumatic brain injury?
Next, your attorney will consider whether you will ever be able to return to work. If the answer to that question is “no,” your attorney will calculate lost future wages based on your age, the job you had at the time of your accident, your education, and the likelihood of your advancement in that job. Added to this will be pain and suffering damages (physical pain as well as emotional pain and trauma), and your attorney will reach a settlement amount to request from the insurer. Since traumatic brain injuries cost so much to treat and can create a permanent disability, the compensation is usually from $200,000 to over a million dollars in some cases.
Why You Should Contact a Springfield Traumatic Brain Injury Attorney Near You
Speaking to a Springfield traumatic brain injury attorney from Finney Injury Law is, without a doubt, the best step you can take following your traumatic brain injury. If another’s negligence caused your traumatic brain injury, you are entitled to recoup your damages from that person’s insurer. The compensation you receive is meant to allow you and your loved ones to recover to the extent possible from your traumatic brain damage. The right Springfield traumatic brain injury attorney from Finney Injury Law is ready to help you through this difficult time, fighting for your future and your rights at every step. Contact Finney Injury Law today.