The term Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) covers a wide range of conditions which can impact someone’s personality, memory, and ability to live independently. Any TBI can be mild, moderate, or severe. Mild TBIs are typically not life-threatening, but they can cause long-term consequences.
Because TBI is such a complex issue and no two cases are the same, there are four main categories of TBI. If you were involved in an accident that resulted in TBI or if someone close to you was, then it could be worth contacting a specially trained brain injury lawyer.
Their job is to help you through the legal process and make sure you get the compensation that you are entitled to. These are the four main types of TBI and how they can impact someone’s life.
Concussion
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Firstly, concussion is the most widely known types of traumatic brain injury that isn’t always categorized as TBI. It is also known as mild TBI because there are not usually any long-term implications. Concussion is typically caused by blows to the head, which often happens during high contact sports.
However, there are some instances where concussion can have a long-term impact on the brain. Individuals who experience concussions more frequently have a higher risk of developing additional conditions like long-term brain damage.
These include chronic traumatic encephalopathy, which can lead to a permanent change in brain function, mood, and behavior. More significant cases of concussion can, therefore, have a long-term impact on a person.
Contusion
Another condition which is typically seen in mild cases is contusion to the brain. This is known as bruising, and it has been known to occur in patients experiencing concussion. It is a small bleed underneath the surface of the brain which either goes away on its own, or needs to be surgically removed.
More severe cases of contusion to the brain can result in a coma if they are not seen to right away. The impact of this depends on where it occurs in the brain, how long it lasts, and the size of the bleed. Like other conditions which cause trauma to the brain, contusion doesn’t always leave a long-term impact, but it can in more severe cases.
The area of the brain which can be damaged depends entirely on where the contusion happens. Someone’s language center could be affected, while someone else’s physical movement could be impaired.
Penetrating TBI
In contrast with the first two conditions, penetrating TBI tends to be a more extreme type of traumatic brain injury. This is because it is caused by a foreign object penetrating the brain and causing trauma.
Removing it can have fatal consequences because it can result in excessive bleeding. The most common cause of penetrating TBI is bullets, but it can happen in other circumstances, such as during a car accident.
It is likely that brain injury will happen when the object enters and then when it exits the head. This means that the amount of damage is much more significant than other forms of TBI. Certain factors that can determine the amount of damage and severity of brain injury are the place that was penetrated, the size of the object, and if there was a brain bleed.
Anoxic TBI
While this isn’t always classed as traumatic, anoxic TBI happens when the brain is starved of oxygen and cells begin to die. This usually happens after around four minutes of the brain not getting enough oxygen, and it can have severe consequences.
It can be caused by toxins, certain cases of anemia which limit the amount of oxygen getting to the brain, or suffocation. Anoxic TBI is also strongly associated with a stroke. The long-term effects of this are highly varied, but it largely depends on the amount of time that the brain was without oxygen, other health conditions, age, and when help was given.
Summary
There are so many types of TBI, that it can be challenging to categorize everything. Patients who have suffered from a traumatic event such as a car accident are likely to take a little time to recover.
Because it can impact someone’s ability to retain new information, process verbal language, and range of physical abilities, it is likely that someone’s ability to work will be impacted by TBI. For this reason, brain injury lawyers specialize in helping people get the compensation that they need in order to keep themselves going and continue to get the necessary help before returning to work.
