What are some of the side effects of work-related traumatic brain injuries?
Each day, Americans sustain traumatic brain injuries in their homes, on the roads and in the workplace. These serious injuries result not only in physical disabilities, but cognitive loss and personality changes. While many tissues in the body can recover from injury, brain cells cannot.
TBI is caused by a blow or jolt to the head, which may or may not cause an open wound to the skull, which disrupts normal brain functioning. Not all blows to the head result in a TBI. The harm from TBIs range from “mild” (a short change in consciousness) to “severe” (a long period of unconsciousness or lost memory). Most TBIs are mild and normally called concussions.
TBI is a leading cause of death and disability, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It estimates that TBIs contribute to nearly a third of all injury deaths.
TBI can result in impaired thinking, lost memory, limited movement, lost sensation (including vision and hearing) and emotional functioning (personality changes, anger and depression). These effects not only impact workers but their families and communities as well.
CDC figures paint a sobering picture of the number and severity of TBIs across the country. In 2010:
• about 2.5 million emergency department visits, hospital admissions and deaths were connected to TBI, (either by themselves or in combination with other injuries);
• the deaths of more than 50,000 people were connected to TBI; and
• TBI was a diagnosis (by itself or with other conditions) in more than 280,000 hospitalizations and 2.2 million emergency department visits.
The leading causes of TBI are:
• Falls – 40.5%,
• Unknown/other – 19%,
• Traffic accidents – 14.3%
• Being struck by or against an object – 15.5%
• Assaults – 10.7%.
Work-related TBIs can be caused by:
• slips and falls in areas that are uneven or slippery;
• accidents involving construction equipment, autos or trucks;
• being struck in the head by an object or piece of equipment being moved from one place to another; and
• being the victim of a crime at the workplace.
If you or a loved one in Montgomery or Bucks Counties has suffered a work-related TBI, the law firm of Louis P. Lombardi II & Associates can help you obtain the medical treatment and compensation you deserve. Call (888) 818-4343 or (610) 239-7600 to schedule your free consultation.