Fort Worth Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyers
Experienced advocacy for head and brain injury victims in Texas
Traumatic brain injuries are often catastrophic. Catastrophic means the victim’s life is never the same as it was before the accident. Traumatic brain injury (TBI) victims with moderate to severe injuries often can never work again. Many have difficulty with social relationships. Most require a lifetime of medical help just to prevent their condition from getting worse. Victims often require psychological help in addition to physical help. Often, the families of a TBI victim need counseling too.
At Slack Davis Sanger, our Fort Worth TBI lawyers have the experience and resources to help victims obtain justice and the medical treatments they need. We work aggressively to show that a driver, property owner, doctor, manufacturer, worksite owner, or other defendants caused your traumatic brain injuries. We work with your doctors and our network of physicians to understand the full scope of your medical needs.
What is a traumatic brain injury?
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that a TBI affects how the brain works. Common causes include a forceful blow or bump to the head that causes the head and brain to quickly move back and forth, or a penetrating injury (such as a gunshot). In 2020, more than 64,000 people in the United States died from a traumatic brain injury.
TBIs are categorized a mild, moderate, or severe. A TBI affects how TBI a victim learns, thinks, feels, acts, and sleeps. Physicians will use neuropsychological and neurocognitive tests to examine a patient’s memory, concentration, problem-solving, and ability to learn. Victims of moderate and severe TBIs often have long-term health challenges that require a lifetime of care.
According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, there are usually two sets of injuries with a TBI:
- A primary injury. This injury refers to the initial damage to the brain at the time of impact.
- A secondary injury. This injury refers to the changes to the brain a few hours or days after the primary brain injury. A secondary injury includes “an entire series of steps or stages of cellular, chemical, tissue, or blood vessel changes in the brain that contribute to further destruction of brain tissue.”
What types of accidents commonly cause a traumatic brain injury?
At Slack Davis Sanger, our Fort Worth brain injury lawyers work aggressively to show how the accident that caused the TBI happened and who is responsible. We have been fighting for Fort Worth personal injury victims for more than 30 years. Our lawyers handle the following kinds of accident cases that may cause a TBI:
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We work with investigators who promptly investigate the scene of the accidents. When necessary, we also work with product safety experts, physicians, and industry experts. We also thoroughly question every witness, review all relevant documents, and use many other strategies to help show the defendants are liable for the TBI.
What are the signs of a TBI?
Johns Hopkins identifies the following possible TBI symptoms:
Cognitive damage. TBI victims may have experienced some level of unconsciousness or be in a coma. If there is no loss of consciousness, they may show signs of confusion, disorientation, altered mental state, a short attention span, difficulty solving problems, memory difficulties and possible amnesia, an inability to understand abstract concepts, a reduced awareness of others and self, and loss of sense of space and time.
Motor deficits. These symptoms include poor balance, possible paralysis, spasticity (a shortening and tightening of the muscles), an inability to plan motor movements, difficulty swallowing, and tremors.
Sensory and perception deficits. TBI victims may show signs of changes in the various senses, difficulty understanding where their limbs are, vision difficulties such as double vision, and other challenges.
Communication problems. These include problems speaking, understanding speech, saying the correct words, reading, writing, finding the correct words, working with numbers, and identifying objects and their function.
Functional deficits. These challenges include difficulty driving, operating machinery, dressing, eating, bathing, paying the bills, and shopping.
TBI victims often have difficulty with social relationships, making and keeping friends, fatigue, dizziness, bowel control, and bladder control. Fort Worth TBI victims may also exhibit irritability, apathy, anxiety, depression, and other personality and psychiatric changes.
How do Fort Worth doctors diagnose a traumatic brain injury?
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) states that doctors use several methods to diagnose a TBI and the severity of the TBI. Generally, CT scans are used to determine if there are problems other than a TBI and MRIs generally aren’t used at the initial exam.
Normally, doctors use a test called the Glasgow Coma Scale (or comparable tests). This test examines:
- The victim’s ability to speak
- The victim’s ability to open their eyes
- The victim’s ability to move
The lower the score, the more severe the TBI. The Glasgow Coma Scale is also used during the recovery process. Researchers, according to the NIH, are exploring other methods to diagnose a TBI, including blood tests.
How are traumatic brain injuries treated?
Many victims of a TBI accident in Fort Worth require life-saving surgery. The treatment team, according to Johns Hopkins includes the following health care providers:
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- Acute and subacute rehabilitation programs
- Long-term rehabilitation programs
- Transitional living programs
- Behavior management programs
- Day-treatment programs
- Independent living programs
If you or a loved one has a moderate or severe TBI, the treatments may be necessary for the lifetime of the victim.
What is the value of my Fort Worth traumatic brain injury claim?
At Slack Davis Sanger, we understand how frightening a traumatic brain injury is for the victim and for the family members. We work with your doctors and our network of doctors to show insurance adjusters and juries the full severity of your TBI. We demand compensation for all your damages including:
- Your medical expenses – including current and future hospital bills, rehabilitative care, assistive devices, medications, and any other type of necessary health care.
- Your pain and suffering – including your daily aches, pains, frustrations, inabilities to function, anxiety, and depression.
- Your lost income and benefits – current and for the rest of your life.
We also demand compensation for any scarring and disfigurement, loss of consortium, and property damage. In cases of completely inexcusable wrong, we seek punitive damages.
Do you have a traumatic brain injury lawyer near me?
Our Fort Worth traumatic brain injury lawyers meet with clients at our Fort Worth offices, located at 100 Lexington Street, Suite 70. We also have offices in Austin and Dallas for your convenience.
Get experienced help. Talk with a respected Fort Worth traumatic brain injury lawyer today
At Slack Davis Sanger, our Fort Worth TBI lawyers understand how life-changing traumatic brain injuries are. For many victims, just getting out of bed is a struggle. Eating, walking, and conversations are all challenges. TBI injuries are not reversible, but with the right medical care, patients can often lead a comfortable life. To assert your right to compensation, please call 800-455-8686 or complete our contact form to schedule a free appointment.
Fort Worth Office
100 Lexington Street
Suite 70
Fort Worth, TX 76102
Main Fort Worth Practice Areas