The unexpected violence of a car crash is already terrifying, but it’s the long-term repercussions of wounds like a brain injury that can be truly scary. Unfortunately, there is a high probability of permanent effects interfering with your ability to hold down a job or simply enjoy the activities you used to love. Suffering a brain injury in a wreck can leave you wondering how you are going to afford your bills while recovering from a serious accident. Consulting an experienced Pennsylvania car accident attorney is critical to protecting yourself after the crash.
Causes of Traumatic Brain Injuries in Philadelphia Car Crashes
Brain injuries can take place during a collision if your head strikes the steering wheel, windshield, or even the ground when forcibly ejected from the vehicle. You don’t have to actually sustain a direct blow to the forehead or back of the skull for a traumatic brain injury to occur, however.
The sudden and extremely violent motion in a wreck may propel a victim’s head to whip back and forth. That force can lead to shearing of brain tissue, or severe bruising if the brain strikes one side of the skull forcefully and then bounces back and also hits the opposite side. Because serious damage to the brain is possible even when the skull isn’t directly struck by an object, a traumatic brain injury can potentially take place in a wide range of accidents.
Possible Causes of Traumatic Brain Injuries in Accidents
- Cargo truck wrecks
- Head-on collisions
- Pedestrians struck by a car
- Rear-end impacts
- Rollovers
- SEPTA bus crashes
- Single vehicle accidents
- T-bone strikes
What It’s Like to Live With a Traumatic Brain Injury
Which exact symptoms you can expect after the injury varies depending on what specific lobe and hemisphere of the brain were impacted. Your prognosis can also change between open wounds that penetrate the skull and closed wounds when the brain is damaged by abrupt movement. Traumatic brain injuries sustained in a car crash can potentially include many symptoms.
Possible Symptoms of Traumatic Brain Injuries
- Behavioral and personality changes
- Cognitive problems
- Chronic headaches
- Difficulty interacting appropriately in social encounters
- Disorientation and frequent confusion
- Inability to concentrate or focus on specific tasks
- Impulsiveness and aggressive behavior at inappropriate times
- Irritability
- Language and speech difficulties
- Memory loss and difficulty forming new memories
- Nausea
- Sensory perception changes to taste, touch, smell, sight, and hearing
Any of these symptoms can make it difficult or impossible to return to work, or force you to find a different job that may pay less. Extensive medical bills from the accident itself are a certainty, but you may also require long-term treatment and additional surgeries in the future. Depending on the specific combination of symptoms present, you could need physical, language, or occupational therapy to overcome (or simply learn to live with) the effects of the injury.
How a Car Injury Lawsuit Can Protect Your Financial Recovery
The drastic changes to your life that come with a brain injury wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t been hurt. This makes the negligent party ultimately responsible for those changes, and that person should be held accountable. With the help of a lawyer, you can pursue compensation from whoever is liable for the accident, whether that is the other driver, the driver’s employer, or someone else, like a faulty part manufacturer.
You already have enough on your plate dealing with the radical physical and emotional changes after a traumatic brain injury. Let a qualified professional with experience in these kinds of cases help with the financial side. An attorney can handle interactions with insurance and present your case in court for the best shot at recovering damages.
If you’ve been hurt by a negligent driver, you need someone on your side to aggressively pursue everything you are actually owed, from medical costs to emotional pain and lost income. Find out how Gary Heslin can help you protect your legal rights during this difficult time. Fill out our online contact form or call the office directly at 215-332-0300 to schedule a consultation with the Heslin Law Firm.
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