Brain Bleed Injury Lawyer

A brain injury can cause immense fear and anxiety because it can create short- and long-term cognitive and physical limitations.  These injuries can be life-changing, disrupting career and family plans and causing immense physical, emotional and financial harm.

Bleeding in the brain can be caused by a traumatic brain injury. This kind of harm can take place when the head is violently shaken or struck by something, which can happen in a vehicle accident or a slip and fall. Because there may be no visible signs of a brain bleed, you need to be aware of the possible symptoms and get prompt medical care after an accident.

Your brain is somewhat protected by membranes and skull. However, bleeding can occur inside the brain and blood can pool between the brain and the membranes, according to BrainLine.org. Bleeding can also occur in the membranes so the blood can pool between it and the skull. The pressure on the brain due to the pooling blood can also result in severe brain injuries and death.

• A hematoma is a tumor-like collection of blood, usually clotted, outside a blood vessel. The subdural space is between the dura (the outermost of three membranes covering the brain and spinal cord) and the arachnoid membrane (the middle three membranes). The epidural space is located on or outside the dura mater.
• A subdural hematoma is bleeding into the space between the membranes covering the brain and the brain itself. Blood vessels run through the brain and between the outside of the brain and the inside of the skull. During a brain injury, any of these vessels can tear and bleed.
• Ruptured vessels in the subdural space cause subdural hematomas. Ruptured vessels in the epidural space cause epidural hematomas. They both take up space in the skull and squeeze down on the brain.
• Epidural hematomas leak quickly and compress the brain rapidly, while subdural hematomas leak much more slowly.
• Because the skull is rigid, the membranes and the brain are compressed by leaking blood. If there’s enough bleeding, the brain can be squeezed so much that oxygen-rich blood doesn’t reach into the brain tissue. This lack of blood causes more brain swelling, which, in addition to blood leaking from a torn blood vessel, forces the brain down through a small hole at the base of the skull.
• The parts of the brain squeezed through this hole, coming into direct contact with the bone around this opening, become so compressed that they stop working. These brain areas control breathing and heart rate, so death can result.

The symptoms of bleeding of the brain, according to WebMD, include:

• Severe headache
• Seizures without a previous history of seizures
• Weakness in an arm or leg
• Nausea or vomiting
• Lowered alertness and lethargy
• Altered vision
• Tingling or numbness
• Difficulty talking or understanding speech
• Difficulty swallowing
• Difficulty writing or reading
• Loss of fine motor skills and tremors
• Difficulty with coordination
• Loss of balance
• Abnormal sense of taste
• Loss of consciousness.

After an accident to diagnose a brain bleed a physicians may take these diagnostic steps:

• Run a number of imaging tests, including CT or MRI scans, which can show internal bleeding or blood accumulation
• Perform a neurological or eye exam, which can show swelling of the optic nerve.

Treatment for bleeding in the brain depends on its location, cause and extent.

• Surgery may be performed to lessen swelling and stop the bleeding.
• Medications may also be used, including painkillers, corticosteroids or diuretics to reduce swelling. Anticonvulsants may control seizures.

How well an accident victim recovers from brain bleeding depends on the location, size of the hemorrhage and amount of swelling.

• A few patients are able to recover completely.
• Potential and even likely complications may include: seizures, stroke, lost brain function and side effects from medications, treatments and surgery (which may result in infections or more bleeding).
• Death may occur despite prompt medical treatment.

Survivors of severe brain injuries will probably have complex long-term problems affecting their personality, their relationships and their ability to live independently. Even with good rehabilitation, support and help in the community, survivors and their families are likely to face uncertain and difficult futures. Probably the most frightening potential for survivors is the possibility of another blow to the head. They know that even the next, slightest trauma could be totally debilitating or worse!

If you or a loved one has suffered bleeding in the brain because of the negligence of another, call a Lexington, KY Injury Lawyer today at our local number — (859) 233-3641.  Or use our toll-free number — 866-77JULIE. Under Kentucky law some personal injury actions must be brought within one year.  So it’s important that you act without delay in order to protect your rights to compensation. If you prefer, you may use our online inquiry form. We will be glad to make a free and confidential evaluation of your case.