Understanding Traumatic Brain Injuries

A car accident can dramatically affect your life forever. Regardless of how careful you are on the road, an unexpected collision can have catastrophic consequences.

Californians who regularly commute should be aware of some of the most devastating injuries that may result from an accident. Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are severe injuries that can have significant long-term impacts. TBI occurs from external force against the head. It can result in temporary or permanent damage that can take months or years to overcome.

There are four primary types of TBI that can result from a car accident:

1. Concussion: This type of injury is common but can cause severe damage. A concussion typically occurs from direct impact to your head, such as from whiplash or from banging your head against a window during the accident.
2. Contusion: Brain contusions also occur from direct impact to the head, except they lead to internal bleeding as well. Contusions can form blood clots in your brain, which may require surgery for removal; otherwise, they can disrupt normal brain functions and cause further damage.
3. Penetrating injury: A penetrating injury is when something pierces through the brain from the accident, such as debris or shrapnel from the vehicle. Penetrating brain injuries can cause extreme brain damage and occasionally results in death.
4. Axonal injury: The last type of TBI occurs when the brain shakes or rotates around in the skull. This typically happens during rollovers in an accident. The shaking of the brain causes tears to form on the brain, which can lead to significant brain damage in regular memory, sight and speech functions.

Each of these types of brain injuries are a cause for concern. They can drastically alter your regular lifestyle and wrack up costly medical bills for surgeries, medication and physical therapy. If you or a loved one ever develop a TBI due to a severe car accident, you deserve to receive proper compensation from the at-fault driver to help you through recovery.

An experienced personal injury attorney can guide you through the process of filing a claim and prioritizing your needs.