Multiple insults to the brain in car wrecks
There are multiple types of brain injury from a car or truck crash. Rapid acceleration and rotational forces can send the brain bouncing around inside the skull. There can be impact with the front windshield or side windows. There can even be impact with an exploding airbag. These forces can twist or tear axons. Axons are the long, thin fibers that connect nerve cells. This tearing, or shearing, can cause bleeding and swelling in the brain. This swelling and bleeding can cause further injury. In animal studies, there are signs of neurodegeneration. Neural fibers break down, triggering cell death.
About half of the victims of concussions recover quickly. In the other fifty percent, the the symptoms can linger indefinitely. Approximately 10% of the people who suffer concussions have problems severe enough to interfere with their activities of daily living (“ADLs”) and work. If you or someone you know, has sustained a concussion or traumatic brain injury from a car crash, explosion, fall or other impact of the skull, seek medical attention. If your head has been subjected to rapid acceleration or deceleration forces, and you have: severe headaches, difficulty sleeping, problems with memory and concentration, lapses in balance and coordination and changes in personality, seek neurological help at once. Reinjuring the brain while it is still in a vulnerable state can lead to serious, lifetime injury. Subtler damage may accumulate, leading to depression and cognitive decline, such that previously simple mental tasks become major challenges. If these symptoms are due to a crash or other accident caused by someone else’s negligence or carelessness, please call our office so that we may help. At ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd., we have the resources to help victims of brain injury and their families.