Head Injuries Can Have Life Altering Consequences
Head injuries are some of the most serious injuries arising out of an Atlanta car accident. These have the potential to leave behind long-term and life altering consequences, unless treatment is begun immediately.
A head injury can refer to any injury that involves the scalp, skull or brain. Atlanta car accident lawyers come across both open injuries where the skull is broken, or closed injuries, where there is no penetration of the skull.
Head injuries can be of many types.
Concussions
These are the most common head injuries. While concussions have been underestimated as brain injuries in the past, new research shows that these mild brain injuries must be treated with plenty of rest. A person who suffers a concussion, and suffers a second head injury soon after, is more likely to suffer complications. Avid sports fans are well-aware that many football players are forced to retire after receiving too many concussions. The reason: once you have suffered one major concussion, subsequent concussions tend to cause much more severe damage.
Contusions or bruises on the brain
Subdural hematoma or bleeding in the brain. These are serious brain injuries and can even lead to death. Symptoms include slurring, confused speech, headaches, lethargic, confusion, nausea, vomiting, weakness, visual disturbances, and seizures.
Subarachnoid hemorrhage refers to bleeding in the subarachnoid space, which is the area between the brain and the tissues that cover the brain. A person who suffers a subarachnoid hemorrhage may suddenly lose consciousness. There may be loss of sensation, and difficulty in movement. The person may display personality and mood changes. He may suffer from stiffness in the neck, nausea, vomiting, and seizures. He may develop double vision, blind spots or temporary loss of vision. His eyelids may begin to droop, and the pupils may be of unequal size.
A head injury can cause a brain injury even if it is a closed injury. There doesn't have to be penetration of the skull, or even bruising or swelling in the skull for a brain injury to exist. The brain can get knocked about within the skull, and be damaged. There isn't any complete cure for brain injury, but a person who is rushed to a hospital ER as soon as possible, and receives treatment immediately, has a much better chance of complete recovery.
