Truck Injury Lawyer Blog : Truck Accident Lawyer & Attorney: Morgan Adams : Contingency Fee Truck Accident Lawyer

One of the most common injuries for survivors of a truck accident is a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). These are actually traumatic brain damage cases because people don't get well from these injuries. As a result of handling large numbers of these cases for clients I have developed a sub-specialty in the area of TBI. Recently my hard work paid off and I was elected to the Board of the American Association for Justice's Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group (TBILG). This is the largest group of lawyers in the country representing those injured through the negligence of others. I look forward to helping other lawyers across the country handle these cases.

Some facts have become apparent in these cases : 

1. ER doctors don't focus on TBI injuries because they wont kill you immediately, and that is all the ER doc is concerned about.
2. In Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI) cases family members are in the best spot to determine the extent of the injury and the changes to the victim.
3. A loss of consciousness is not needed in order for a TBI to occur

I highly recommend that anyone that believes they, or a loved one, has a MTBI or a TBI, review the government's Center for Disease Control website and publications on TBI's. The government website can be found HERE.

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There are several myths about Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI's), all of which can be explained when you understand the science and medicine involved in the causation and treatment of TBI's. One of the most popular myths is "You can't have a TBI if you don't lose consciousness." 

The Center for Disease Control, an arm of the federal government, dispels this myth on its web site.  The CDC defines what constitutes a mild TBI and states: That a mild traumatic brain injury is "caused by a blow or jolt to the head that disrupts the function of the brain. This disruption of the brain function is typically associated with NORMAL structural neuroimaging findings (i.e. CAT scan, MRI) ... and may or MAY NOT involve a loss of consciousness." (emphasis added) See here for the full definition. This definition is accepted in the medical and scientific community. Thus you can have changes in personality, temperament, and memory with a mild TBI, and all the other consequences, even though the imaging tests are normal and the victim cant identify a loss of consciousness.

There is nothing worse than a brain injury. It robs us of our souls and sense of self. In fact it kills the old you, and you become someone else. If you know someone who has one you know what I mean.

I see lots of TBI's as a result of handling truck wreck cases across the country. This week I spent several days in Chicago with members of the Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyer Network, including program chair Gordon Johnson, keeping up on the latest medical advances in diagnosing, treating, and litigating TBI cases. I was fortunate to have dinner with some great trial lawyers, Ken Levinson from Chicago and Steve Gursten from Detroit. It is always great to discuss and work on significant complicated cases with phenomenal lawyers like Ken and Steve.

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One of the injuries that is of greatest concern for those involved in a truck wreck is a brain injury. While severe brain injuries are easy to identify, mild traumatic brain injuries are not. Explaining the way the brain was injured, and proving to a jury the long term impact of having a brain injury when the victim looks normal, requires training and expertise. I previously blogged on the requirements a competent trucking lawyer should have but I neglected including expertise in handling brain injuries.

Please keep in mind that even though doctors will frequently use the term "mild" to describe many brain injuries, there is nothing mild about brain damage. The use of "mild" by a doctor only means that the person isn' t dead or in a coma. If someones brain is damaged, they have lost their future. They may have memory problems that will have caused them to lose their past. They will never be everything they could have been, even if they do everything they can to try to recover. 

Mild brain injuries typically occur from a wave effect. The brain is like jello, made up primarily of water and is encased in one of the hardest bones in the body, the skull. Because the brain is somewhat fluid, in a wreck it can move and strike the skull. The cells are torn under the forces involved in a wreck. Current medical science makes it clear that it is not necessary for the head to have hit anything in order for brain damage to occur.

Personalities change, memory becomes a problem, frustration and anger are not uncommon. The victim however is able to talk. They don't want to admit anything is wrong, and the family is just so happy for the victim to be alive that they blame the changes on other problems. A questionnaire can help experts determine whether there is a mild traumatic brain injury such as the one that can be downloaded here: Symptom Questionnaire.

If you think someone you love has had some of the changes discussed above have them tested by a neuropsychologist. These are the trained professionals best able to determine whether or not a mild traumatic brain injury has occurred.

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