The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports [1] that approximately 2.5 million Americans sustained a traumatic brain injury (TBI) in 2010 alone. Depending on their severity, traumatic brain injuries can leave victims with significant long-term medical complications that have the potential to keep them from working and affect their day-to-day lives. Furthermore, the medical expenses associated with sustaining a TBI can easily rise into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
What is a TBI?
Traumatic brain injuries are injuries to the brain that disrupt its normal function. They usually occur after a bump or blow to the head causes the brain to move around within the skull. The most common form of a TBI is mild concussion, which itself may require victims to engage in a significant period of rest. Cumulative or more serious TBIs may even result in serious complications that significantly alter the course of a victim’s life.
When TBIs occur in preventable accidents that are the result of someone else’s negligence, victims can recover for both their economic and non-economic losses by bringing a personal injury claim against the responsible party. Because personal injury law can be very complicated, the most effective way to make sure that you are able to obtain the compensation to which you are entitled is to retain a Philadelphia personal injury lawyer as soon as possible.
Accidents are commonly the result of negligence
Under general tort law principles, a plaintiff must be able to establish that their injuries were caused by someone else’s negligence in order to be able to successfully sue. In this context, negligence has a specific legal meaning – a failure to act as a reasonable person would in the same or similar circumstances. As a result, whether negligence occurred is often a fact-specific analysis that is specific to the type of accident that occurred. Some examples of negligently caused accidents that may result in a TBI include the following:
- Car accidents
- Pedestrian accidents [2]
- Slip and falls
- Motorcycle accidents
- Truck accidents
- Construction accidents
- Workplace accidents
After being involved in an accident in which a TBI is suspected, victims should seek medical attention immediately. Once your condition is stabilized and you are sure that you are receiving the appropriate treatment, your first call should be to an experienced personal injury lawyer licensed to practice law in your jurisdiction.