Brain damage cases may be the most difficult and challenging injury cases to prove, because there are often so very little immediate and apparent physical signs. There are many factors that can cause brain damage, some easier to identify than others.
Apart from pre-existing medical conditions, such as meningitis or measles, which can escalate to cause brain damage, there are other causes of brain damage, too.
Genetic conditions are typically dysfunctional genes that are passed from parent to child. Dysfunctional hereditary genes can stunt full brain development.
Tumors within the brain are growing masses of non-infectious cells within the brain space. Tumors put pressure on the brain, within the cranial space, and can cause massive bleeding within the skull.
Physical forces, in the form of a blow, or blows, to the head are the cause of a large number of brain damage cases. Blows to the head can happen anywhere, and at any time.
In the event of requiring resuscitation after losing consciousness, a lack of blood flow to the brain can be a cause of brain damage. Under normal circumstances the brain is able to manage for a maximum of four minutes without blood flow. Clots in the bloodstream can impede blood flow to the brain, causing a stroke.
Some typical types of brain damage are amnesia, aphasia, agnosia, and visual neglect. Not one of these types of brain damage has any physical appearance.
Most people are familiar with amnesia, which is forgetfulness, and manifests in many degrees, from mild to severe, and may affect long and short term memory, sometimes both, in varying degrees. Aphasia affects the ability to communicate, and can affect both speech and written communication.
Not responding to the direct environment is typical of agnosia. Agnosia sufferers generally see their environment, and may even be somewhat aware of it, but they do not respond to their environment, as in they do not respond to animate or inanimate objects, or even people, because they cannot remember the environment.
Visual neglect is exactly what the term implies. Visual neglect sufferers are able to see what they are doing, and what they are busy with. However, the brain ignores the impulses from one half of the brain, and as a result only half a plate of food may be eaten, or only half a line may be seen. Anything within the ignored eye’s field of view simply “does not exist”.
Brain damage is often not apparent when viewing the sufferer from a distance and it may only become apparent that something is amiss when the brain damage sufferer is engaged in conversation or is studied for some time.
Even then, if the brain damage is not very severe, the affliction may not be obvious, and will only become apparent after clinical testing.
It makes no difference how mild brain damage cases may be, but if they are in any way impacting on lives negatively; and the brain damage was brought about by the carelessness of another, you should speak to a brain injury lawyer.
© Copyright Tony Flanigan 2011, 2012, 2013
