Brain injuries

Traumatic brain injury lawyers need to understand that injuries to the head often result in physical, mental and psychosocial damages. This is not the same as "post-traumatic stress disorder." A true head injury action concerns trauma to a person’s head. The damage to the person’s head can affect not only a person’s thinking, but also their emotional condition.

Some commentators have labeled the head injury epidemic as the "silent epidemic". There are ten times as many people suffering head injuries as there are the combined total of muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injuries. Many times the injured person becomes an incompetent, violently aggressive individual.

The results from head injuries can be broadly categorized into three categories. The first is psychosocial changes, which may be even more disruptive than physical impairments. A frequently observed result from a head injury is greatly increased aggressiveness. This is the most difficult symptom to manage, with very little improvement over time. Indeed, the bad temper or aggressiveness can actually get worse over time. This can often have a devastating impact on family members. The mood-disordered patient can also have manic episodes, or become schizoid, psychotic, or anxious. Depression is also very common, as well as self-hate, stealing, bulimia, and inappropriate sexual behavior.

The second category of results from brain injuries is impaired cognitive abilities. Cognition is a blend of memory, thinking and perceptions, which gives a person their own understanding of the world. Divorce often occurs with brain-injured patients. They are extremely difficult to manage because they are very reactive to unspoken anger and tension. There may also be significant memory deficits.

The third category of results from brain injuries is impaired physical abilities. There are many physical abilities which can be impaired after a brain injury. Expert advice in the areas of neurology, physical medicine and psychiatry is needed to deal with the various physical problems of the brain-injured patient.

Contact Texas brain-injury lawyer Scott Nelson if you or a loved one has sustained a brain injury. Serving Corpus Christi, Houston, San Antonio, and all of Texas.