Areas of Practice
Traumatic Brain Injuries
We have extensive experience in litigating traumatic brain injury cases.
- Overview
- Types of Brain Injuries
- Medical Resources & Traumatic Brain Injury Information
- Actual TBI Cases represented by Lipcon, Margulies & Alsina
- Traumatic Brain Injuries in the News
Types of Traumatic Brain Injuries
There are two major classifications for brain injuries:
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is typically the result of an external blow to the head like a fall or accident
- Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) usually results from internal brain damage from conditions like a stroke
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) results from damage to brain tissue caused by an external force. In the United States, TBI is the leading cause of death for people under the age of 45, with a traumatic brain injury taking place every 15 seconds. Leading causes of TBI are motor vehicle accidents, acts of violence, falls, sports and recreational injuries, lightning strikes, electric shocks, and blows to the head. In cases like whiplash and shaken babies, for example, traumatic brain injuries can occur without any outward physical evidence of injury or trauma.
Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) results from damage to the brain caused by strokes, tumors, anoxia, hypoxia, toxins, degenerative diseases, near-drowning and/or other conditions not necessarily caused by an external force.
The impact of brain damage in patients manifests in various ways. Most noticeable are changes in memory, frequent fatigue, rapid mood swings and mental rigidity. More severe TBI & ABI injuries can result in serious physical and mental limitations like paralysis and reduced mental skills. Less severe side-effects can include ringing in the ears, jaw and facial pain, and vertigo.
Concussions, often considered a mild blow to the head, can also have a major if not life-threatening impact. Actress Natasha Richardson fell on a beginner’s slope during a ski lesson in early 2009. Although she got up from the fall and "felt fine", within hours complications developed and she was pronounced brain dead. Medical attention for any type of head injury is always recommended.