Brain Injuries
Brain injuries can be attributed to many different causes, but no matter the origin, they can drastically alter and change a person’s life.
Not all brain injuries are immediately obvious after they occur. Commonly, brain injuries are subtle, showing themselves as changes in normal mental capacity, behavior or personality characteristics. Depending on the nature of the brain injury and the extent of brain damage, symptoms can either be mild, moderate or severe. Some symptoms may be seen immediately following the brain injury while others might take several days or weeks to manifest.
Do We Have Experience Handling Brain Injury Cases?
In retaining an attorney to represent someone who has had a brain injury, it is imperative to hire an attorney who has vast experience in handling these types of cases. Brain injury litigation is uniquely complex and requires lawyers that are experienced in the medical and legal issues involved.
At Harry S. Cohen & Associates, we have that experience and have seen firsthand the devastating effects a brain injury can have on the life of a patient and their loved ones. We understand that a brain injury can lead to medical bills, loss of employment, loss of life’s pleasure, future medical needs, and around the clock care. We know and work with leading experts in all fields that are required to present your case at trial. Through experience and education, our firm is able to expertly evaluate brain injury cases.
Here are just a few examples where negligence has caused brain injury:
- The Jordich Case - Delayed Delivery by Nurse Midwife Causing H.I.E.
- The Filer Case - Failure to Timely Order a C-Section and Exerting Excessive Pulls During a Vacuum Extraction
- The Geiger Case - Hypoxic Brain Injury - Dislodged Breathing Tube
- The Jonas Case - Brainstem Stroke from Birth Control Pills
Types of Brain Injuries
In the setting of a medical malpractice case, brain injuries can be caused by a multitude of things including failing to order the appropriate tests in the ER after head trauma, prescribing birth control pills to a woman with hypertension, failing to appreciate the impending signs of a stroke, etc.
Common types of brain injury are anoxic brain injury, hypoxic brain injury, or traumatic brain injury.
Anoxic and Hypoxic Brain Injuries
Hypoxic brain injury occurs when there is a reduction in oxygen flow to the brain. If the supply of oxygen and glucose are not enough to fulfill the brain’s metabolic needs, brain tissue damage could result. At a severity, the condition becomes an anoxic brain injury, the result of which could lead to events such as a stroke.
Traumatic Brain Injury
Traumatic injuries happen when a sudden trauma damages the brain. This includes events such as a fall, accident, or other scenarios that result in brain contusions, lacerations, skull fractures, or other.
Recovering from Brain Injuries
Brain injuries do not always result in long-term impairment or disability, although the extent and location of damage both have a significant effect on the outcome. In serious brain injuries, the result can be permanent disability, including neurocognitive deficits, speech or movement problems, and mental handicaps. There also may be personality changes. Severe brain damage may result in persistent vegetative state, coma, or death.
How We Can Help
The lawyers and medical staff at Harry S. Cohen & Associates are here for you and your family. Our dedication to our clients, combined with our knowledge of the law, enables us to determine the correct course of action for your family. Our competent and caring staff will be able to help you understand whether the brain injury was a result, or could have been avoided, of negligence by your health care provider.