How Often Do Brain Injuries Occur After Car Accidents?
Medical researchers have found that our brains can provide the same kind of computing power as the biggest supercomputers but with only a fraction of the energy needed to make those computations. Remarkably, that brain power is generated from an extremely fragile organ protected by just a thin layer of bone. That is why a traumatic brain injury (TBI) after a car accident can be devasting.
The online advocacy group Treat Now reports that someone suffers from some brain injury every 23 seconds. It also finds that 50,000 people die from TBIs. They also report that car accidents account for 14% of brain injuries, with a majority of the victims being children and young adults. How often do brain injuries occur after car accidents, though? Read on where we address that question.
Types of Brain Injuries Caused by Illinois Motor Vehicle Collisions
A brain injury can create a range of debilitating symptoms that significantly impact a person’s life. When considering an effective treatment for these injuries, doctors must first determine the type of TBI they are dealing with. The following are the common types of brain injuries caused by car accidents.
Concussion
A concussion is considered a mild TBI. It can cause severe headaches, nausea, vomiting, and blurred vision. In a car accident, a concussion is caused by a blow to the head, such as striking the steering wheel or side window.
Brain Contusion
Just as you’re your limbs or torso can suffer from a contusion after being struck, so can your brain. Although you might not see a brain contusion, you will feel it as it presents with many of the same symptoms as a concussion.
Skull Fracture
In a car accident, blunt force trauma directed at the skull can result in a fracture. If the skull is fractured, the brain may also sustain a contusion or become concussed. Bleeding from the ears or nose, along with swelling at the impact point, are indications of a skull fracture.
Acquired Brain Injury
An acquired brain injury is often referred to as a secondary brain injury. Instead of impacting the brain, this injury results from an internal injury. For instance, if the accident causes a lack of oxygen to the brain, it could lead to brain cells dying, which is considered traumatic.
Coup-Contrecoup
A coup-contrecoup brain injury can be thought of as a double-sided TBI. It means that the force of your head being struck in a car accident causes a trauma at the impact point that forces the brain “backward” to create a second trauma at the opposite side. This is a common injury in a car accident where you might strike your head on the steering wheel and experience a bounce back, which essentially is a second point of impact.
Brain Penetration
A severe collision can result in the car breaking apart. Any one of those flying pieces of debris can penetrate a person’s skull and enter the brain. This is the type of injury that often results in death. If the person survives a brain penetration, they could be facing debilitating disabilities that last a lifetime.
Getting a Fair Compensation After You Suffered a Brain Injury
A brain injury resulting from a car accident in Ottawa, IL can affect all aspects of a person’s life. Unlike a broken bone that will heal, there are some brain injuries that you can’t recover from. There might be a way to relearn specific motor or speech skills, but that will require extensive, ongoing therapy. The most important part of an insurance claim or personal injury lawsuit after a car accident in North Central Illinois is determining what is fair compensation.
Here are some of the economic and noneconomic expenses that your Ottawa car accident attorney will consider when calculating your losses:
- All medical expenses to date
- Future medical expenses
- Lost time from work
- Potential earning loss
- Home care
- Impact on relationship with spouse
- Diminished quality of life
You will only have one chance to achieve that fair compensation. In other words, when you agree to a settlement, you can’t go back months later for more. That is why you want to get the number correct. The attorneys at Schweickert Ganassin Krzak Rundio, LLP have the right experience in these types of cases to help you come up with that fair number.
We understand that dealing with a traumatic brain injury after a car accident can be a challenge for the victim and their family. We want to provide you with the guidance and information to make the right decisions for an equitable resolution of your case. Call to set up a free consultation to discuss the accident and the injury.
