The brain is the most important organ in the human body, controlling the majority of its functions. The brain can be damaged in a number of ways, but is frequently caused by injuries to the head. If the brain is injured, the consequences can be serious and even fatal.
Our clinical negligence solicitors are experienced in dealing with cases involving brain injury. In cases where someone has suffered as a result of delayed diagnosis of a brain injury, or has sustained a brain injury during surgery, we will work with medical experts to try to find whether negligent treatment was the cause, and if so, to help secure appropriate compensation.
A closed head injury is where an impact, for example, a blow to the head or a fall, causes the brain to be accelerated, decelerated or rotated very quickly. The violent movement causes damage when the brain's delicate connections between nerve cells are broken. The brain may also be lacerated if it suffers an impact on the bony ridges on the underside of the front of the skull. Crucially, this may injure important parts of the brain - the temporal lobe (which is responsible for much of hearing, speech, vision and long-term memory functions) and the frontal lobe, which amongst other things is the part of the brain responsble for decision-making and higher mental functions.
Like any other organ, when injured, the brain swells and bruises. Enclosed in the hard skull, swelling of the brain can cause damage as it becomes squeezed against the skull walls. This can impair circulation, and can be fatal. For this reason, intracranial pressure (the pressure inside the skull) must be carefully monitored where brain injury is suspected, and swelling must be kept to a minimum.
A penetrating head injury is where a blow breaks the skin and/or fractures the skull. The object that caused the blow, or a piece of bone from the fractured skull, may enter the soft tissue of the brain, causing injury.
Penetrating injuries cause a greater risk of epilepsy than other types of brain injury.
A subarachnoid haemorrhage is most commonly the result of bleeding from an aneurysm (a weakened area of a blood vessel) where there is bleeding into the subarachnoid space between layers covering the brain. The condition affects 6 to 12 people in every 100,000.
Characteristic symptoms include a severe, sudden-onset headache, which is unusual for the patient and which may be accompanied by vomiting and loss of consciousness, or by neck stiffness. The severity of the symptoms may depend on the extent of the bleeding. However, doctors should always consider subarachnoid haemorrhage in cases where patients present with these symptoms. Such cases require, further investigation, or referral to a more senior or specialist practitioner. Delayed diagnosis could lead to serious consequences and could be fatal.
Whilst our primary aim in brain injury cases is to investigate whether medical negligence was the cause of our client's suffering, at Switalskis we take an holistic approach to client care, and we can also work closely with other specialist departments within the firm to help you plan for the future.
Our Community Care and Mental Health Law teams are highly experienced in dealing with Court of Protection matters, and can provide advice and assistance on managing the affairs and protecting the interests of people who have lost, or who will soon lose, the capacity to make decisions for themselves as a result of brain injury.
Making a complaint about Medical Negligence
How we can help:
Personal Injury and Medical Negligence Claims against other Solicitors
clinical.negligence@
switalskis.com