Your Personal Injury Lawyer for Concussion in California

While certain activities, particularly sports such as football, hockey and soccer, are associated with concussion, it can also be caused by accidents like falls or traffic collisions. Concussion is a type of mild traumatic brain injury —or TBI—whereby a jolt to the head or body causes the head to move back and forth or side to side quickly. This movement causes the brain to move around within the skull, hitting the bone or even twisting at the brain stem. The result of this can be damage or stretching of the brain cells, or even chemical changes to the brain.

The symptoms of concussion are varied and may not come on right away. They include:

• Loss of consciousness
• Headache
• Confusion
• Sensitivity to light and sound
• Nausea and/or vomiting
• Slurred speech
• Difficulty remembering things
• Ringing in the ears
• Vision problems e.g. seeing stars, blurry vision
• Tiredness
• Forgetfulness
• Irritability
• Difficulty concentrating and/or following a conversation

Not all concussion patients will display all of these symptoms: certain symptoms may come and go and they may vary in intensity. Similarly, not all concussion patients will lose consciousness. This all makes it fairly difficult to correctly spot concussion. That’s why it’s sensible to treat any head injury or impact to the head as a potential concussion and seek medical advice as quickly as possible.

Most people with concussion as a result of a personal injury go on to make a full recovery. However, there may be complications. These include temporary or permanent memory loss, personality changes and post-traumatic vertigo. A minority of people will go on to develop post-concussion syndrome, meaning concussion symptoms—headaches, dizziness, confusion—last beyond three months.

If you’ve suffered a concussion as a result of a personal injury due to the fault of another party, you may have a personal injury case. A strong case could result in a settlement which may be used to cover your medical bills as well as any money you lost owing to time off work. This is particularly important if you run your own business, as a concussion may mean you are unable to fully concentrate on your work for a number of weeks. At Scranton Law Firm, our lawyers also take into account the pain and suffering you endured both during and after the injury. Feel free to contact us so that one of our California personal injury lawyers can begin to assess your case.