Head Injuries

A head injury is any trauma that injures the scalp, skull, or brain.  The injury may be only a minor bump on the skull or a serious brain injury.  Around 40% of spinal cord and head injuries are caused by auto, truck or motorcycle accidents or accidents involving all-terrain vehicles.  Brain injuries often occur in car accidents or truck accidents when the head hits the windshield.

Concussions in football or other sports can cause long-term brain injury or permanent back and spinal cord injury. Falls or violence can also cause spinal cord or brain injury.  Males between the ages of 15 and 35 are most often victims of spinal cord damage.  Head injury or spinal cord injury can also happen on construction or job sites.

Head injuries fall into two categories:

1. External (usually scalp) injuries:  The scalp is rich with blood vessels, so even a minor cut there can bleed profusely.  The “goose egg” or swelling that may appear after a head blow is the result of the scalp’s veins leaking fluid or blood into (and under) the scalp.  It may take days or even a week to disappear.
2. Internal head injuries, which may involve the skull, the blood vessels within the skull, or the brain.  The brain is cushioned by cerebrospinal fluid, but a severe blow to the head may knock the brain into the side of the skull or tear blood vessels.  Some internal head injuries, complications of a fractured skull, torn blood vessels, or damage to the brain itself can be serious and possibly life threatening.

Other types of conditions for which you may need legal guidance from a head injury law firm include infections, tumors, strokes and other forms of oxygen deprivation, metabolic disorders, and deceleration injuries.

Infections such as encephalitis and meningitis may cause loss of crucial brain tissue.  These infections can also be fatal.  Tumors, even benign ones, can take over space in the brain that is needed for basic functioning.  A stroke means that the brain is deprived of oxygen, and the longer the deprivation, the more severe the damage.  Heart attacks and lung conditions can also delay the delivery of oxygen, sometimes causing irreparable harm.  Ingesting poisons and other dangerous chemicals can lead to metabolic disorders, killing nerve cells in the brain.  Finally, deceleration injuries occur when the brain is moved back and forth rapidly in the skull.  Common causes are forceful shaking, as in the shaken baby syndrome, and motor vehicle accidents.

If you or a loved one, are experiencing any type of physical, cognitive or emotional symptoms as a result of a head injury, it is imperative that you consult with an experienced Nevada head injury attorney.  With over 25 years of legal experience, the Law Office of Paul W. VanDerwerken has the skills that you need to seek justice for what happened.  Call our office today at 702-385-5050 for a free legal consultation.

Symptoms of brain injury

Physical symptoms of a brain injury include:

• Dizziness
• Blurred vision
• Headaches
• Loss of vision

Cognitive symptoms of a brain injury include:

• Amnesia
• Short term memory loss
• Disorientation
• Poor concentration

Emotional symptoms of a brain injury include:

• Agitation
• Depression
• Irritability
• Personal changes in general
• Changes in appetite

A competent and knowledgeable head injury attorney in Las Vegas, Nevada is one who is familiar with all of the above issues and fights for the ruling that will enable his client to be financially sustained long term.  If you or a loved one has been injured as a result of a brain injury contact a Las Vegas head injury lawyer at the Law Offices of Paul W. VanDerwerken for a free consultation.  Our attorneys have successfully represented thousands of accident victims and obtained exceptional results in a wide variety of serious and catastrophic injury cases.  Call today at 702-385-5050 for a free consultation.