Each year there are between 50,000 and 100,000 people who have impaired ability to work and complete their normal daily activities due to brain injury. Most of these injuries are the result of an automobile accident. A common misconception in Irvine California, and other related Orange County accidents is that you have to be driving recklessly or extremely fast to get a serious brain injury. In addition, many think that you have to hit our head against a steering wheel, or smashing against the front windshield, to have a severe brain injury. That is simply not true. A Brain trauma can occur from accidents that were at slow or moderate speeds. Most brain injuries are from bruising, bleeding, tearing, and swelling.
BRUISING (BLEEDING)
If you are driving a car at 45 miles per hour and are struck head-on by another car at 45 miles per hour, your brain goes from 45 miles per hour to zero in a fraction of a second. The actual impact is as if you were going 90 miles per hour (considering both car’s speed). In these situations, the soft tissue of the brain is pushed against the hard bone of the skull. This in essence, “squishes” the brain against the skull may cause blood vessels to tear. When blood vessels tear, blood may be released into areas of the brain in an uncontrolled way. This causes pressure on the brain tissue since there is no room for extra blood in the skull. Sometimes, when people have received a head injury from a car accident, they feel “fine”. However, within a short period of time, they began to get more and more confused until they eventually lapse into a coma. If you have been injured in this manner, it is imperative that you are working with an attorney that understands the short term and long term ramifications of this type of injury.
TEARING
In the case of a car accident, or a serious fall, the brain can be thrown forward, then bounced backward. In this forward/backward motion, the brain can be torn. This can be very serious. When tearing of the brain occurs, many of the brain functions can be short circuited. Unfortunately, tearing may not show up on a CT Scan or an MRI.
SWELLING
Swelling can occur when the injured persons body send “agents” to heal the injured area. These “agents” can cause pressure to start building up within the brain and actually can push down on the brain. This may cause damage to the structure of your brain primarily in the areas of breathing or your heart rate.
All of these types of brain trauma can have serious and long term effects on your life. If you or a loved one has had this type of injury, and it was caused by another person, a defective piece of equipment, a poorly constructed public play area, even something as mundane as a large un-repaired crack in a sidewalk, you should arrange for a consultation with pi-attorney.com, Jeff Dawson. He has the experience to get you the fair and just compensation for your injuries.
Recent Legal Questions