With March being Brain Injury Awareness Month the brain injury attorneys at the Pittsburgh office of Shenderovich, Shenderovich & Fishman, want to share information about brain injuries to help our community better understand how brain injuries occur and what those injuries can mean to the people who experience them and then have to find the means to get on with their lives.
Frequency and Types of Brain Injuries
According to the Brain Injury Association of America (BIA), about 3.6 million people suffer some type of acquired brain injury every year. An acquired brain injury is one that occurs after birth and is not something you were born with. There are two types of acquired brain injuries.
- Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) – the brain is damaged due to an external force impacting the head
- Non-Traumatic Brain Injuries – the brain is damaged due to something going on inside the body
Common Causes of Traumatic and Non-Traumatic Brain Injuries
Certain activities and medical conditions are more likely to cause brain injuries. Traumatic brain injuries are by far the most common kind of brain injury acquired. Almost 78% of the brain injuries that occur each year are traumatic brain injuries.
Causes of TBI
- Falls
- Assault, injury from a weapon
- Domestic violence, child abuse
- Motor vehicle accidents
- Sports/recreation injuries
- Military service injury
Causes of Non-TBI
- Strokes
- Infectious and inflammatory diseases
- Toxins/poisoning
- Oxygen deprivation
- Seizures
- Drug reactions
Traumatic Brain Injury Severity
The severity of a traumatic brain injury is classified based on the response of the individual receiving the injury. Traumatic brain injuries are classified as mild, moderate, or severe. A concussion is a common form of mild TBI. Whether or not someone loses consciousness and for how long is indicative of the severity of the injury.
- Mild TBI – brief or no loss of consciousness, dizzy, vomiting, sluggish, confused
- Moderate TBI – unconscious up to 24 hours, signs of brain trauma, bruises, bleeding, CAT scan shows damage
- Severe TBI – Unconscious over 24 hours, no sleep/waking cycles, CAT scan shows damage
Recovery after a Traumatic Brain Injury
The more severe the brain injury, the worse are the chances for a full recovery. Persons who experience mild TBIs may have symptoms that linger but they do tend to improve over time and most recover. Of those who suffer moderate TBIs and survive, about 30% will have some form of permanent disability. Over 30% of those with severe TBIs do not survive and of those who do survive over half are left with moderate to severe disabilities.
When you experience a traumatic brain injury, it can be a long road back just to relearn some of the basic activities of daily living. At Shenderovich, Shenderovich & Fishman, we have seen the struggles that our clients have endured as a result of their traumatic brain injuries. If you or a loved one received a traumatic brain injury as a result of the wrongful acts of another, our Pittsburgh brain injury lawyers are prepared to go after every possible resource to assist in your healing and recovery. Contact us for a free consultation by clicking here or calling 888-988-9467.