The Common Causes and Symptoms of Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a serious and devastating injury often associated with car accidents, slips and falls, workplace accidents, and large commercial truck wrecks. Unfortunately, many brain injuries go undiagnosed in the initial stages of the injury. A basic understanding of the common causes and symptoms of traumatic brain injury is important to keep in mind in order to better recognize it following an accident.

The majority of TBIs are caused by the following events:

• Motor Vehicle Crashes: Motor vehicle accidents are one of the main causes of TBI. The forces involved in a crash are many times substantial, as the body and head are through about during the crash. Accidents involving autos, bicycles, motorcycles, and pedestrians can result in traumatic brain injury.
• Falls: Traumatic brain injuries are also associated with falls when the head strikes the ground or a stationary object. Slip and fall accidents, falls from a ladder, falls from a building, and falls from scaffolding are examples. When the head strikes the ground or an object, the forces involved cause disruption to the brain and its tissues, resulting in TBI.
• Falling objects: Similar to falls, objects falling and impacting the head can lead to traumatic brain injury. Products falling from store shelves, materials or tools falling from elevated construction sites, objects in warehouses, or other workplace environments can all hit the head with enough force to cause TBI.
• Sports: Everyone is now aware of the risks of traumatic brain injury associated with sports. Concussions, for example, are considered a form of TBI depending on their severity. Sports like football, soccer, hockey, volleyball, biking, skating, and climbing all involve the risk of causing TBI.
• Explosive blasts: Powerful blasts for explosions are known to cause brain injury. Many of our military soldiers and veterans have unfortunately experienced this firsthand. But explosions are industrial plants and worksites that result in the same disruption of the brain’s anatomy that results in TBI.

The most common symptoms following a traumatic brain injury are headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, sensitivity to light, balance difficulty, short-term and long-term memory loss, confusion, and fatigue.

Memory loss can be categorized into two areas: Anterograde and Retrograde Amnesia. Anterograde amnesia is present when you have loss of memory after the accident. For example, you cannot remember events like the one-two hour period of time while you were being treated at the scene of the crash, or your first memory is waking up in the hospital. This type of post-accident memory loss is a significant symptom of acquired brain injury.

Retrograde amnesia occurs when you experience memory loss of events that took place before the crash. An example of this would be where your last memory was leaving your home earlier that morning, or just leaving work to drive home—events that took place before the car crash happened. Like Anterograde, this type of memory loss is often associated with a traumatic brain injury.

Other symptoms associated with TBI include ringing in your ears, loss of taste or smell, speech difficulties, and personality changes.

One significant indicator of TBI, although not absolute, is loss of consciousness. By definition, if you lost consciousness due to a crash, you most assuredly sustained some level of injury to your brain. The length of unconsciousness will better define the severity of the injury. However, it is important to note that you do not have to lose consciousness in order to have suffered a TBI. This is well-documented in medical literature. Many accident victims suffer TBI following an event and never lose consciousness. Confusion or disorientation (altered mental state) following an accident are sufficient signs to raise concern about a brain injury.

Following an accident, it is critical to seek medical attention as soon as possible. However, some of the symptoms associated with TBI may not arise until a day or two following the accident. It is therefore important to be on the lookout for these symptoms and seek medical attention immediately if they occur. Always listen to your body!

Traumatic brain injuries are serious injuries that can lead to life-long challenges. Recognizing the causes and symptoms of TBI can oftentimes allow you to seek timely medical care, which can help reduce the long-term effects.

Guajardo Injury Law has extensive experience in representing clients who have sustained traumatic brain injuries. These are complex cases that require experienced legal professionals. If you have suffered a TBI, give us a call. Our consultations are free, and we are always available to assist you and answer your questions. Guajardo Injury Law (512) 500-2450.