California Injury Attorney Blog

As California brain injury lawyers, we have represented victims and families dealing with the devastation of head injuries. These injuries can range from mild traumatic brain injury which can itself have devastating symptoms, to traumatic brain injury which can result in tragic medical consequences. The word "mild" does not actually mean that the symptoms are mild. In fact, a mild traumatic brain injury can cause life-changing symptoms and have a major impact on such functions as memory, cognition and other areas of brain function.

And now a medical research project at the VA San Diego Healthcare System which started about three years ago to discern post-traumatic stress disorder from traumatic brain injury, is gaining national attention and could help all patients who are suffering brain injuries.

Mingxiong Huang and his colleague Roland Lee are medical researchers at the University of California San Diego. They have focused on the specific diagnostic tool magnetoencephalography, or MEG, and diffusion tensor imaging to determine whether this tool might be a better diagnostic method than MRI (magnetic resonance imaging).

According to the report in the North County Times, these research findings are so promising that Huang is headed to Washington to brief officials as to how these advanced brain-imaging techniques might just be the answer for more accurate detection of not only mild traumatic brain injuries, but distinguishing these injuries from the post traumatic stress disorder.

We are aware that MRI does not reveal some brain injuries after car accidents for example, because we have represented clients that had normal MRI's, but suffered severe symptoms after an accident, such as a rear-end vehicle collision. As it turns out, the research reveals that in fact 70 percent of traumatic brain injuries are not found on MRI which is the most commonly used device for scanning and diagnosing brain injuries.

These researchers have found that "damaged areas of the brain appeared on MEG scans as having slower-than-normal brain waves, while diffusion tensor imaging recorded those areas as black holes or as frayed or weakened fibers." This will not only help doctors distinguish brain trauma from post-traumatic stress disorder in about 90 percent of the cases, it will also help diagnose mild traumatic brain injuries.

Continue reading "San Diego Brain Injury Research Could Provide Better Diagnosis" »

According to the federal Centers for Disease Control, 1.5 million Americans sustain traumatic brain injuries annually and 75% of those are considered what is deemed "mild."

But the California Injury Attorney Blog wants Americans to know that even a "mild" traumatic brain injury can be very serious and devastating. In fact, about 15% of those patients with mild traumatic brain injury can suffer disabling and persistent problems.

Recently, San Francisco's injury law firm Hersh & Hersh, which is affiliated with the California Injury Attorney Blog, achieved a substantial settlement for a man injured in a rear end accident. Rear end accidents are common, but can result in persistent injury, including what is called Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI). The firm established through the medical evidence that a low impact rear end accident which causes a whiplash can also cause MTBI and vestibular (inner ear) injury which, when combined, can result in serious, lengthy disability.

The settlement for the MTBI of the injured victim was obtained despite the fact that the defense attempted to characterize the crash as low impact with "experts" that would likely not have been allowed to testify as such at trial because they did not have proper credentials in the area in which they were attempting to testify. The defense hired a neurologist/psychiatrist and a neuropsychologist to try to prove the plaintiff was malingering and/or emotionally disturbed so that he had no injury but imagined it. Those theories were rebutted by the testimony of treating health care providers and a lot of hard work by counsel.

MTBI is an injury that is very commonly overlooked and not diagnosed. However, the injury can be devastating. It can be the result of the forceful motion of the head or impact that causes a brief change in mental status such as confusion, disorientation or loss of memory and can also involve a loss of consciousness for less than 30 minutes. Some symptoms can persist including: fatigue, headaches, memory loss, trouble concentrating, sleep disturbance, dizziness, balance problems and other symptoms.

Mild traumatic brain injury can result in a brief loss of consciousness and/or confusion or disorientation. Brain scans such as MRI and CAT scans can be normal in MTBI, but the victim of this injury can have cognitive and concentration problems, headache, memory problems, mood swings and other symptoms which persist.

The victim of MTBI will often look and act normal even though in fact they are not feeling or thinking in a normal way. If you have been in a rear-end or other auto accident, you may have suffered a MTBI without knowing it. You could be suffering a disabling injury and need medical and other support, including recovery for loss of time at work. Contact the California injury lawyers of Hersh & Hersh for more information on MTBI and your legal rights. We can provide a free consultation and assessment of your situation.