Unfortunately, the answer to the above question is yes. If you suffer head injuries in a Mississippi car crash, the result could be a traumatic brain injury that could negatively affect you for the rest of your life, not to mention leave you facing lifetime medical and other injury-related costs.
The Mayo Clinic defines a traumatic brain injury as one that causes your brain to become dysfunctional in one or more ways. Given that no two TBIs are exactly the same, yours could leave you with lasting speech impairment, vision and/or auditory impairment, cognitive and/or memory impairment, or a myriad of other debilitating symptoms that make your continued employment impossible, thereby adding to your financial stress as well as your physical and emotional stress.
Immediate assessment
Even if you think the “bump on the head” you receive in your car crash is a minor one, you should seek immediate emergency medical attention. You also should insist on being transported to the nearest hospital or medical center where a trained head trauma specialist can assess your injuries. Only an experienced health care professional can assess you, test you, and, if necessary, begin to immediately treat you for a TBI if indeed you suffered one. The sooner you begin treatment, the better chance you have of minimizing the effects of your TBI.
Post-accident symptoms
If the emergency room or other physician who sees you right after your accident gives you a clean bill of health with regard to a TBI, you still may not be out of the woods. TBI symptoms not only vary dramatically from person to person, but they also can show up days or even weeks after your accident. Consequently, you and your family should remain vigilant for any of the following symptoms you may experience in the weeks following your accident:
- Blurry or double vision or any other type of eye problems
- Ongoing tinnitus, i.e., ringing in your ears
- Slurred speech or the inability to get the proper words out of your mouth
- Lack of coordination and/or problems with your balance
- Forgetfulness and/or the inability to think clearly
In addition, do not blow off any comments your family members make regarding your increased irritability or anger. Also do not discount any mood swings, anxiety, depression or fear you may experience after your accident. TBIs often cause these and other psychological problems.
This is general educational information and not intended to provide legal advice.
