Chicago Brain Injury Lawyer Blog

A recent editorial in the Spokeman-Review argued for the passage of a proposed piece of federal legislation that would target aiding victims of and preventing youth traumatic brain injuries. These injuries have always been problematic, but our Chicago brain injury attorneys have seen the public awareness of these issues increase over the past few years. This is likely caused by more high-profile stories about systemic instance of these brain injuries arising, such as in youth sports and in young military combatants. In addition, scientists are just now beginning to unlock some of the mysteries of the brain, allowing them to better understand how the harm occurs, when it occurs, and why. In that way injuries that otherwise might never have been identified are now within the understanding of a growing body of medical information of the subject.

With growing public awareness comes more calls for policymakers to take action to help tackle the issues. In Washington D.C. that call for action has taken the form of House Resolution 2600. The bill was spearheaded by the father a now 6-year old victim of shaken-baby syndrome—a problem that is rooted in brain trauma. The bill calls for common sense coordination to better identify ways to prevent and treat brain injury victims. As the proponents note, brain injuries are cumulatively much more damaging than any single disease—affecting 80,000 young American each year, killing 11,000 minors annually.

Yet, for the seriousness of the problem, diagnosis and treatment of the situation has been inconsistent. H.R. 2600 seeks to correct this problem by identifying and disseminating best practice information to be used by health care professionals and involved parents. It is hoped that the spreading of this information will go a long way in bringing uniformity to the treatment and prevention of head trauma in youth.

More specifically, the legislation calls for a seven year timeline to streamline effective diagnostic and treatment practices. Brain injury centers would be set up to coordinate the effort, collect data, and share information. The bill does not mandate a particular course of care for victims but instead it simply works to better identify what actually improves the life of victims and what doesn’t. Under the current plan the funding for the project will be carved out of discretionary funds already given to the Department of Health and Human Services. In that way it is budget neutral. Long-term the program is sought to be transferred to each individual state.

The bill appears to have widespread support among lawmakers. There are current over 100 co-sponsors of the legislation. The list of political supporters crosses all aisles, with some of the more ardent liberals and strident conservatives lining up to stand with those hoping to address the issue. The bill, also known as the National Pediatric Acquired Brain Injury Plan Act is expected to pass both the House and Senate when it is released from committee later next year. Advocates hope that it is ready for a presidential signature as soon as this summer. Each Illinois brain injury lawyer at our firm fully support all common sense measures to help victims of these tragedies, coordinate medical care, and disseminate information which will prevent future victims.

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Family Awarded $4.5 Million Following Birth Injury Lawsuit

Family Receives $1.5M Settlement for Birth Injury/Wrongful Death Lawsuit

We have often used this space to discuss our Chicago brain injury attorneys opposition to medical malpractice damage caps. These caps interferences with the regular justice system under the “tort reform” banner that represents unnecessary and unfair intrusions upon the rights of regular consumers. We must ensure that consumers are made aware of the truth behind these measures. It is particularly troubling that so many residents are not aware that these measures are promulgated by the companies and entities which have the most to gain by taking away the rights of victims. These damage caps are somehow sold as good for the public as a whole, notwithstanding the fact that they are far worse for every individual community member.

Most of the discussions around medical malpractice damage caps refer to proposed state and federal legislation which would create these damage limits. However, those companies which seek to avoid full responsibility for their conduct are attempting to force the issue in other ways as well. For example, in the nursing home context, many facilities force new residents to sign an arbitration clause which requires all future disputes to move through the arbitration process, instead of the regular court system. As we have consistently explained, arbitration clauses are almost always skewed to the advantage of large defendants, because juries are not involved, rules of evidence are different, the process if often expensive, and defendants often chose the arbiter.

On top of all of those downsides, some companies have added even further limitations to the arbitration agreement. As recently discussed at Lawyers.com, some nursing homes tried to impose damage caps on new residents as part of the arbitration agreement. Fortunately, at least one state court has struck down these unconscionable impositions on consumers. Our Chicago brain injury attorney John Perconti was asked to explain the nationwide implications of two recent state Supreme Court cases. The cases, Shotts v. OP Winter Haven and Gessa v. Manor Care of Florida involved damage limitations inserted into arbitration clauses. In Shotts the limitation was a complete ban on punitive damages. In Gessa that challenged clause had a punitive damage ban as well as a $250,000 cap on non-economic damages. After hearings on the issues, the court struck both bans as violating the public policy of the state.

Attorney Perconti explained that there may be nationwide implications as “these opinions should deter nursing homes in other states from imposing damage caps in their agreements.” Illinois has not seen many, if any, of these clauses. But had the Florida Supreme Court upheld the clauses, it would be likely that nursing homes in our areas might have begun using them more in an effort to further avoid accountability for errors that it makes which harm residents. Even if local homes try to include these caps, Perconti explains that our state highest court would likely strike them down as well. He explained that these clauses “would violate Illinois public policy and undermine the remedies set forth in the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act.” Taking about substantive protections afforded to all community members via the guise of a forced arbitration clause should not be tolerated in our state.

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U.S. Senate Arbitration Fairness Act Would Provide Fairness for Nursing Home Abuse Victims

Legislation Introduced to Remove Unfairness of Mandatory Arbitration Clauses

Our Chicago brain injury lawyers have frequently noted on this blog that car accidents and slip and falls are the most common causes of traumatic brain injury. However, another way in which many victims experience these injuries is during physical fights. Significant physical contact of the head with the body of another (or the ground) often occurs in physical scuffles and permanent brain damage can result. Many people get into these disagreements without truly thinking about the long-term consequences that can arise. When the fight was provoked by one side or the actual physical harm was caused most significantly by one party, then a brain injury lawsuit may be filed to hold that party accountable for the consequences of the fight. In other cases, third parties who were not involved in the attack but contributed to it could also be implicated in a suit.

Many examples of these events can be found. One of the more high-profile recent examples involves a physical attack after a professional baseball game against fans of opposing teams. As discussed recently by ESPN, the family of a San Francisco Giants fan filed suit against the Los Angeles Dodgers organization after the fan was brutally beaten by a Dodgers supporter in the parking lot of the team’s stadium. The Giants fan was apparently ambushed by supporters of the other team, who threw him to the ground and kicked him repeatedly in the head. He suffered a significant brain injury. Even though the attack occurred months ago, it is only now that the man has regained the ability to speak and perform basic tasks like writing his name.

Following the incident the man and his family filed a brain injury lawsuit against the Dodgers organization for the environment that was created which led to the unprovoked attack. In the complaint, the victims argue that the team created an environment at the club that was generally hostile to fans of the opposing team. Since the filing of the lawsuit many others have come out to explain how certain aspects of the fan experience at this stadium seem to encourage taunting and rousing of certain fans against those supporters of other teams.

Unfortunately, these types of attacks are not uncommon. Besides at sporting events, bars and nightclubs are also the site of frequent brawls which cause serious injury. Yesterday the National Sun published a story on another attack that led to a serious traumatic brain injury. According to the victim’s wife, her husband was outside of a pub when an argument broke out between him and two other patrons (both of whom were wearing Santa suits). Apparently the men in the Santa outfits punched the victim in the head, causing him to fall onto the cement ground. He was knocked unconscious.

The man was taken to the hospital but released soon after. It wasn’t until the next day when the man’s family realized he was acting rather unusual that they took him back to the hospital. There the medical team discovered that the man had suffered bleeding and swelling on the brain. He was immediately transferred to the intensive care unit. The medical team has been able to get the bleeding to stop, but they are unsure what the long-term damage might be.

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Bike Struck By Car Recovers $675,000 in Brain Injury Lawsuit

Levin & Perconti Recover $975,000 in Wrongful Death Case Resulting from Fall from Balcony

Military service members who have suffered traumatic brain injuries face severe challenges when they return home. For many, their injury throws their lives upside down, and they struggle to deal with the challenges caused by their new disabilities while integrating back into their old communities. Each of our Chicago brain injury lawyers have followed closely as stories continue to roll out of the vast number of service members who have experienced these injuries and the often inadequate treatment that they receive upon their arrival home. As many as 320,000 troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have reported suffered some form of traumatic brain injury over the last decade of combat. Brain injury care remains murky as medical professionals are still uncovering the best ways to ensure these victims don’t suffer further brain damage and recover as much as possible.

Several brain injury victims’ advocates are stepping up to the challenges presented by the situation and are working to help the victims. New Jersey News reported this week on a nonprofit effort that is being spearheaded by one community to provide needed resources to military members who suffered a traumatic brain injury. The effort was first thought up by an occupational therapist who worked at a naval hospital. The woman saw firsthand the way that these injuries debilitated the victims, leaving serious physical and psychological scars.

To help these victims the therapist met with other local advocates and began work on a new nonprofit organization to help these veterans with traumatic brain injuries. At the center of the organization is the Thomas Jerome House—a place where victims can live in a group home setting to best provide for their recovery and well-being. The facility is named for a veteran who was blinded and lost a large part of his frontal lobe by a sniper’s bullet in Iraq.

In working with these victims the therapist learned that many families were concerned about the long-term well being of the soldiers. It remains unclear what type of support system they would have as the war winds down and resources are cut to provide for their long-term care. Family members of these service members voiced worry about what would become of their loved one when their support networks were gone. That is where the idea for the group homes first arose.

The idea behind the facilities is to essentially create a group home atmosphere specifically for soldiers where there is an emphasis on hominess and military camaraderie. Veterans will be allowed to apply for access to the home after they are discharged from the hospital. The home will then provide around the clock care and assistance from those with medical or nursing backgrounds. The founder stated that those spearheading the effort “were trying to keep them out of nursing home, we’re trying to keep them from being homeless, and trying to prevent higher rates of disabilities.”

The therapist leading the project has experience in these efforts. Her family has previously created to nonprofit homes for those with developmental disabilities. Those houses provide transition spaces for individuals who have aged out of the state system. In a similar way, the Thomas Jerome House seeks to help military members who are transitioning out of the hospital.

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Study Questions Efficacy of Military Brain Injury Treatments

Civilian and Military Hospitals Join to Bring Awareness to Brain Injury Month

Last week CNN discussed the latest brain injury lawsuit that was filed against the National Football League by former players. The suit involves allegations of failing to take effective proactive steps to prevent brain injuries and failing to warn players of the true risks of their conduct. Beyond that, these latest suits also claim that the NFL used a “hand-picked committee of physicians” which skewed the information available to players regarding the effects of head trauma. The suit contends that the players were never made aware of the true risks to which they were exposing themselves, and, as a result, suffered severe, lifelong consequences.

Considering that we have frequently reported on these lawsuits, it is might be helpful to discuss a distinction in the legal issues involved. These suits stemming from sports brain injuries include different legal arguments that those involving other traumatic brain injuries—such as those experienced in car accidents or falls. For example, is a car accident suit where a brain injury is developed, the arguments made by the brain injury lawyer will usually stem from the driving conduct of the one who caused the crash. Liability should attach, the attorney will suggest, because the negligence of the driver caused the accident which caused the injury. That is pretty straightforward.

These sports related brain injury lawsuit are a little more subtle—and more complex legal issues are involved. When suing the NFL, the players are not arguing that the members of league office literally caused the injury. Instead, they are arguing that certain steps were not taken that should have been taken (i.e. better warning of risks) or that certain steps were taking negligently (i.e. using doctors that would not provide proper head evaluations). Like car accident lawsuits, these are also rooted in the law of negligence, in most cases. However, the negligence that is alleged is much more subtle that that found in more straightforward accidents.

The players will contend that the failures on the NFLs part to fully inform them of the dangers led them to play different than they otherwise would have. For example, one of the defendants explained that he would have likely used his head less to make plays. Instead, he explained that he was actually coached to do the opposite. As a result, he suffered head trauma that he otherwise would not have suffered.

For its part, the NFL is almost sure to deny the allegations, and claim that they did their best to protect players. The league will explain that some physical contact is inherent in the game of football, to which the football players were well aware. In the end, therefore, it will come down to a comparison of what steps the league actually took to protect players, and what a jury would deem reasonable steps that it should have taken given the circumstances. If they deem that the steps were insufficient, then the players may recover. Our Chicago brain injury lawyers know that these same basic arguments about warnings and effective prevention are at the root of others sports related brain injury cases, like ones stemming from college, high school, and youth athletics.

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Head Injury Lawsuit Filed on Behalf of Ex-Football Players

Former Illinois Athletes File Brain Injury Lawsuit Against Eastern Illinois University

Our Illinois brain injury lawyers were intrigued this week to read about a new “virtual” brain injury support group that is leveraging technology to help those who have suffered a traumatic brain injury. It is a unique and helpful way to aid those from whom certain services may not otherwise be available. Considering that so much uncertainty exists in brain injury treatments, all of these new approaches should be continued and encouraged as much as possible.

The Roanoke Times published a story on one virtual support group. This particular group was development in order to improve the lives of a group of brain injury victims who leave in rural regions of the state. Support groups are common for many people who have experienced a wide range unique life circumstances and events. The personal communication and connection with others who are going through similar experiences has long been known to be helpful. Things are no different for brain injury victims, but it may even be more important than for most groups. Brain injury victims need mental “exercise” to help keep their minds healing. Support groups provide on additional way to help in those exercises.

However, depending on where one lives, it is often impossible for many to reach a physical location where other brain injury victims meet. In many rural settings these victims often have no access to transportation, live in poverty, and may be physically unable to travel long distances. In these situations many victims lose the ability to socialize, developing a sense of isolation. These situations would be tough for anyone, let alone those whose lives have already been turned on their head following a traumatic brain injury.

That is where the virtual support group comes in.

This latest program is still in its infancy, but it is an important example of what the future may look like for these support options. Loneliness is a real problem for these individuals which may be addressed. The program, known as “Community Living Connection,” is just finishing its second test run. It involves volunteer participants to have weekly virtual therapy sessions, via using of video and microphone computer technology. Fifteen participants were involved in the first ten-week test, and twenty six were involved in the second. The group is led by a moderator who works to coax discussion while also helping patients engage in exercises to retrain their brains. Program participants have given rave reviews the service and explain that is opens up a new world of which they would otherwise be left out.

Experts explain has the virtual service is just one part of a massive new industry known as “telehealth.” In the past most telehealth advances have been used for chronic care disease management and education. This involves the monitoring of patients’ vital signs and providing other observations from afar while the patient is at home. Those involved in the industry have been quick to praise the use of virtual brain injury support groups. One noted, “I think it is an awesome, innovative idea. You know, your greatest barrier to telehealth is your lack of imagination.”

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Bike Struck By Car Recovers $675,000 in Brain Injury Lawsuit

Levin & Perconti Recover $975,000 in Wrongful Death Case Resulting from Fall from Balcony

Denver Channel News discussed a tragic story last week about a teenager who suffered a brain injury who is working to convince state legislators to provide him with the funds he is owed. It is a tragic example of the injustice of so many tort reform measures that our Illinois brain injury lawyers fight hard to oppose.

The story involves the case of a boy who was born in 1997 with a crippling brain injury. His family eventually filed a medical malpractice suit against the hospital where the child was born, because they learned that the injury could have been prevented and was likely caused by inadequate care that was provided by medical professionals involved. The case went to trial and the jury ruled in the family’s favor. They awarded the family $30.8 million, because the overall costs to the child as a result of the harm over the course of his lifetime were significant. The funds would be used for a wide range of care that will help the boy live as normal a life as possible considering the circumstances.

However, the family has not received anything since the jury verdict was reached nearly five years ago.

The reason is based in state law which exempts certain medical institutions from liability. The hospital where the inadequate care was provided happened to be a state institution. As such, it is considered a governmental entity requiring a “claims bill” to be reviewed and passed by the state legislature. Unfortunately, the brain injury lawyers involved in the suit explain that the state has made a habit of “sitting” on these bills and preventing the victims from receiving the amounts that a jury in their community found them to deserve.

Unfortunately, these bills often get caught up in the political process and the unseemly games which are always involved in political matters. In this boy’s case, the state’s Senate heard the bill and passed it, which would allow the child to receive the award. However, things have not gone so well in the state House. That body refuses to give the bill a full hearing, meaning that it cannot be voted on. Until the body votes and approves the measure the child cannot receive the funds. The boy wrote a letter to the state legislature pleading for help. Because the family financial situation is in shambles, that very letter took 3 weeks to write on a rudimentary communications board. The family cannot afford to purchase more advanced tools until the award they received is actually provided.

Situations like these act as a clear example of why the judicial system and the legislature are separate bodies. The judiciary is set up to handle disputes between community members in a fair honest, way. The legislature works in very different ways, and is influenced by a wide range of political pressures which have no bearing on the details of an individual dispute. Intermingling the judicial system with the legislative leads only to unnecessary problems, complications, and unfair delays. As with all tort reform measures, there is little to gain from injecting political influences into the judicial process. All efforts toward this end should be fought tooth and nail to ensure other victims are not forced to wait years to receive awards or, worse, to never receive the award at all.

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Family Struggles to Find Support Services After Brain Injury

Many Illinois Brain Injury Victims Never Fully Recover

Our Chicago brain injury lawyer knows that preventable brain injuries affecting children are always the toughest to swallow because of the lifetime of consequences that often result. Late last week KSAT published a detailed story explaining the way that increased medical teamwork help in treatment efforts for children with traumatic brain injuries. The story began by reinforcing the scope of the problem. In total over 5.3 million people are living with the effects of one of these injuries. Each year another 85,000 people suffer a TBI. Annually 50,000 more individuals are killed because of traumatic brain injuries. Many of these victims are children, and many of the causes of the injuries are preventable. In children, traumatic brain injuries are the number one cause of disability and death. Every day more kids are killed by TBIs than cancer or any other disease. The problem is so widespread, that these brain injuries kill more children every year than the top ten diseases combined.

Making matter worse, as our brain injury attorneys have frequently explained, current treatments for these conditions are minimal. Medical professionals still have a lot to learn when it comes to helping victims recover from their injury and minimizing deterioration. There remain a wide range of treatments, from the initial stabilization efforts to rehabilitative care for restoring daily life functioning and acute treatment to prevent secondary injuries. The article explains the top three causes of traumatic brain injuries are consistently the same: car accidents, falls, and firearm accidents. Young adults and the elderly are most often affected by these injuries. This is to be expected considering that both are at increased risk of automobile accidents, and the elderly have by far the highest rate of serious slip and fall accidents.

When it comes to helping children with TBIs learn and develop as fully as possible, many researchers are considering new coordination techniques. Most admit that while progress has been made in the last few years, there is still a lot of work to be done. On the good news front, over the past five years there has been a seventy percent decrease in mortality rates for children with TBIs. In addition, there has been increased beneficial outcomes among those who survive. That is particularly encouraging, because it would be far less than ideal for more children to survive only to lead lives where they are permanently and severely disabled.

Surprisingly these improvements have come not from advances in medicine but from better application of already available tools. Most importantly, medical staff needs to engage in multidisciplinary efforts to ensure the best outcome for child brain injury victims. Everyone from critical care doctors and nurses and therapists to respiratory therapists and EMS workers must coordinate efforts for maximum beneficial outcomes. In addition, experts explain that the improvements in child brain injury treatments have been helped by better coordination with emergency room professionals, intensive care units, and rehab centers. One expert involved in a hospital brain injury team admitted that if you drop the ball at any level, than it could mean the difference between a child living well on their own and being permanently disabled.

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Sports and Traumatic Brain Injuries

In Illinois, Treating Brain Injuries May Now Be In Our Own Hands

A recent KSAT article included an in-depth interview with a renowned brain injury doctor who has specialized in helping child victims. The doctor has worked with southern Illinois patients, and has been responsible for vast improvements in the outcomes for many of these victims. Our Illinois brain injury lawyers were impressed to learn that not only were more children’s lives being saved by improvements in care, but the quality of life for those survivors was also drastically improving. This is very positive news that has tremendous implications for all those families who have youngsters who fall victim to these injuries.

As part of the interview, the doctor provided some interesting insights into some unique facets of brain injuries and treatments for those injuries. For example, he explained the important role that mitochondria play in brain cells (and subsequently brain injuries). He noted that the mitochondria are the “energy hogs” of the cell, as it uses the necessary energy to perform the complex tasks required of the brain. The functionality of the brain in large part depends on the efficiency of the mitochondria in the brain cell. Essentially the mitochondria can be viewed as the nuclear power plants of the brain. When something goes wrong, there can essentially be a leakage. That leakage can be deadly, because it sends the message to the cell that it is time to stop functioning. When a traumatic brain injury occurs, the brain has no energy. This makes the person unconscious and sends the surrounding cells are a message that they are supposed to stop functioning. Halting these leakages is essentially the challenge of preventing complications from the brain injury.

The doctor also explained that at the forefront of improving traumatic brain injury treatments is improving imaging. Of course the first step in treating a problem is to understand exactly what is going on. The best option right now is to conduct MRIs on patient brains and attempt to test the mitochondria and determine if something is going wrong. What has recently been uncovered is that children who suffer these injuries have mitochondrial problems for weeks afterwards. This is actually good news, because it means that once new treatment methods are devised, doctors might have time to stop the breakdown and improve outcomes.

Essentially those possible treatment options would be new drugs that might help stop the mitochondrial breakdown. There are at least three candidates at the moment, but it will take years before any of those has received a thorough enough test to be sure that they either do or do not work as hoped. If effective the drugs will allows medical professionals to take a proactive approach to helping these victims. Right now the main strategy is to treat the brain in intensive care and let it heal on its own. The drugs would travel to the brain, go directly to the mitochondria, and hopefully help them heal. This active approach, it is hoped, will result in less swelling in the first few days after a TBI, less intensive care, and faster overall recovery.

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Facts on Traumatic Brain Injury

Personal Injury Lawsuit Filed After 15-year old Injured During Deliveries

US News’s “Health Day” section published a story last Friday on a new study which found even more risks of head injuries among youth, teen, college, and professional football players. Our Chicago brain injury lawyers have repeatedly blogged in the past few months on the growing body of evidence that suggests that the physical head trauma that exists as part of these games poses many more risks that originally assumed. This latest research tries to provide more tailored information, as it specifically looked at stroke injury risks in football players and the various alternative factors that may increase the risk of stroke.

The research was conducted by experts from the Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis. The study was a small one, as it used the case study approach instead of the usual mass data analysis of most efforts in this area. The findings recently appeared in the online version of the Journal of Child Neurology. Researchers examined teen football players who had suffered a stroke. They used their examination to determine which factors related to these players might have increased their likelihood of suffering the injury. Unlike traumatic brain injuries which involve the physical contact to the head of the victim. A stroke is a sudden, internal degenerative condition that may cause significant brain damage.

The research identified a long list of factors that may increase the risk of stroke. These include an increase in hyperventilation, use of anabolic steroids, and use of highly caffeinated drinks. In addition, as previously explained, repeated head trauma (beyond coming with its own problems) can independently increase the risk of stroke. Also, obesity was strongly linked to the strokes. Researchers believe the obesity link was particularly important because obesity heightens the risk of independent stroke factors like high blood pressure (hypertension).

The study’s author noted that of particular concern was the fact that youth football can begin for some children who are only five years old. When that is the case, these players may experience repeated brain injuries over a period of decades. That head trauma quite often comes with significant long-term effects. This is the case even when no single trauma is severe enough to draw much notice from outside observers. Also troubling is the fact that the body-mass index of players continues to increase. This means that the force of the tackles in each game are increasing, which may make brain injury even worse.

Overall, our Illinois brain injury attorneys know that this research is yet another piece of evidence of which all those involved in youth football should take notice. We have already explained repeatedly how repeated traumatic brain injuries, particularly undiagnosed concussions, can have significant effects on players for the rest of their lives. This study adds yet another risk. As if there wasn’t already enough incentive, coaches, administrators, trainers, parents, and other observers must take note of these risk factors and take every reasonable step possible to keep our young players safe. No game is worth a lifetime of brain trouble, particularly when preventative steps can be taken which would eliminate much of the risk.

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Two More Former Football Players File Illinois Concussion Lawsuit Against NCAA

Head Injury Lawsuit Filed on Behalf of Ex-Football Players

Our Chicago brain injury lawyers have reported often on these pages about the rise in sports related head injuries and the need to be vigilant about their presence. An individual brain injury—like a concussion—can have only minimal effect on a player so long as it is properly caught and treatment is provided. The real danger is in not catching the concussion at all, opening the door to aggravating the injury. The consequences are high in those situations as anything from brain damage to death can ultimately result.

The challenge in correctly identifying a traumatic brain injury has been leading many researchers to investigate ways to easily, accurately, and timely identify if head trauma has occurred. The federal government has also been involved in the situation, as many service members experience these injuries. According to the Army Times progress may have been made on this front. Pentagon officials are now considering a range of new diagnostic tool to help detect whether or not a concussion has occurred. While the new tools are promising, officials are quick to point out that none of them constitute of “magic bullet” to quickly and perfectly determine the potential harm of a head injury. Instead, officials believe that using a combination of tests in conjunction might ultimately prove to be the most useful way to help in these situations.

The combination of tests will likely be used to determine if and when a concussion victim is capable of returning back to duty. One of the most novels tools involved is a hand-held device that can test for protein fragments that have been released into the bloodstream. The device is still in the testing phase, but in smaller samples it has proven quite effective at identifying whether or not a concussion had occurred. The results of a much larger examination of the device’s effectiveness are expected early next year. If the device performs well it is likely that it will be used in more widespread ways in the future.

Beyond that, military doctors are also combining use of a wide range of other techniques. One is known as the EYE-trac, and it is a computer device that tracks visual movements and cuing in a potential victims. The tracking results can be used to test inattention and memory loss, which are common following concussion. Lab tests of saliva or skin are also used to identify biological markers of brain injury. In addition, more sophisticated MRI techniques are helping to paint a clear picture of the working of an individual’s brain. Of course advanced imaging tests and some other lab results are much more expensive and time consuming, and so the search for a more direct and reliable identifier of traumatic brain injury remains underway.

It is hoped that the increased surge in research attention around the topic will yield good results. As one involved researcher explained, “there’s been a paradigm shift in research, with extreme pressure to develop safe and effective treatments, and to get the ball rolling as fast as we can.” In particular, it is hoped that the “Holy Grail” of an effective concussion identifier will be found, because it is much harder to detect mild brain injuries compared to severe ones.

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Pediatricians Say Boxing Not Safe for Kids & Teenagers

Former Illinois Athlete Files Brain Injury Lawsuit Against Eastern Illinois University

Last week The Telegraph reported on the end of an target="_blank"Illinois brain injury lawsuit where a plaintiff was ultimately awarded more the $2.3 million. The victim in this case had suffered his injury after being involved in a car accident in 2009. Automobile accidents and slips and falls are by far the most common causes of traumatic brain injuries like the one suffered by the victim in this case. When the accident or the fall was caused by the unsafe actions of another then it is often appropriate for civil lawsuits to be initiated so that the victims can recover for their losses.

For example, this brain injury lawsuit was filed because the victim’s car was hit by another car being driven by a pizza delivery man. The 26-year old victim was a passenger in a van in Edwardsville in Southern Illinois when the van in which he was riding was hit head on by the young man delivering pizzas. According to information that came out during the trial, the delivery driver was headed eastbound on a local road. He was driving far too fast and was on a cell phone. His speed and distraction meant that when a car in front of him stopped quickly, the delivery driver was forced to swerve into the westbound lane to avoid rear-ending it. However, when he swerved into the westbound lanes, his car hit the van head-on. As a result, a boxed vacuum cleaner in the van slammed into the victim’s head, causing the traumatic brain injury. The victim ultimately required hospitalization, surgery, and extensive rehabilitation. While he has made progress, the man’s brain injury lawyers explained that he will never fully recover.

The subsequent brain injury lawsuit included a few unique legal issues. For one thing, there was significant disagreement about who was responsible. The driver in an individual capacity was clearly at fault. In addition, because the man was on duty at the time both the owner of the pizza place and the company which franchise the pizza service were also named defendants. In the end the jury found that the franchising company was 30% at fault and the individual owners were 70% responsible for the accident.

The pizza owners and franchising company were cited for negligence beyond that required because the delivery man was an agent of the company at the time of the accident (a principle known as respondeat superior). Instead, the plaintiff alleged that independent actions of the companies were independent acts of negligence. In arguing that the companies were liable, the attorneys involved explained that the policies of the companies contributed to the accident. Specifically, evidence showed the payments to the drivers were based on how quickly they could deliver the pizza. They needed to deliver two pizzas in an hour just to make minimum wage. Those financial incentives contributed to the reckless driving of the delivery man and ultimately in causing the accident in question. As one of the lawyers explained, the companies, “created an environment with its franchisees that put timely delivery of food products ahead of public safety.” The law requires these large companies to be held accountable for these actions.

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Lawsuit Filed After Inmate Suffers Brain Injury

New Technology Aims to Help Victims of Traumatic Brain Injuries

Over the past several decades there has been a significant boom in an academic arena often referred to as “Law and Psychology.” Of course the topic includes a vast swath of legal issues all connected to applying new advances in psychology to various parts of the creation and application of laws. For example, many legal scholars, including Chicago legal professor John Bronsteen, are leading the way in advocating for policymakers to make decisions in part based on psychological information about personal well-being and happiness. Many of those scholars had previously discussed the way that psychological knowledge should influence criminal sentencing.

Recently, the “Godfather” of many of the most important 20th century advances in experimental psychology published a new book that explores one way that psychological findings can impact personal injury cases. In his latest tome, “Thinking, Fast and Slow,” Daniel Kahneman explains how the heuristic known as “anchoring” may skew results in certain personal injury damage awards if damage caps are implemented. Brain injury lawsuits would often fall under the damage limits proposed in many states and at the federal level.

The principle of anchoring refers to the fact that when people are asked to quantify something—such as a brain injury damage amount—they are influenced by figures that they are exposed to beforehand. This is true even when those figures have no real connection to the items being quantified. For example, in the classic anchoring experiment, participants are asked two questions in this order:

1. Was John F. Kennedy older or younger than 55 years old when he was assassinated?
2. How old would you guess John F. Kennedy was when he was assassinated?

Half of the study’s participants would be asked an alternative version of the first question where 55 years old was replace with 40 years old. Surveyors always find that what age people guess in the second question is influenced by the form of the first question. In other words, the older the age suggested in question one, the older the guess in question two. On one hand this is logical in that participants might assume that the first question is a “hint” indicating what the actual amount is close to. However, researchers have found that the distorting effect of the first question applied even when it was obviously wrong. For example, even where the first question asked if JFK was older or young than 95 years old, the effects were found. What this means is that when asked to quantify something not necessarily known cold, people are heavily influenced by even arbitrary quantities that they are exposed to.

In Thinking, Kahneman suggests that anchoring may lead to unintended consequences when injury lawsuit damage caps are instituted. He suggests that when juries are told that the cap of any damages cannot be higher than $1 million, then jurors may use that cap as an anchor. In that way, awards that might otherwise be lower are arbitrarily inflated close to that cap amount. Contrary to popular belief, therefore, smaller defendants who might otherwise be forced to pay more modest sums will be adversely affected by the cap.

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Med Gadget reported this week on a new scanner that may offer important advances for those who have suffered a brain injury. The device, known as Infrascanner Model 1000, is used to detect intracranial hematomas—bleeding on the brain inside the head. It had been approved for use by the European Union for the last three years. However the U.S. Food and Drug Administration just recently approved the device for use on patients here in the United States.

The product works by using infrared light to see through the patient’s skull and thereby allowing detection of blood build up that might exists between the skull and the brain. Doctors can therefore quickly test many different regions of the skull. In the emergency room context it will allow doctors to decide in a timely fashion whether or not a particular patient needs a follow up CT scan to get a better idea of the extent of a brain injury victim’s injuries. Blog readers know that saving time in the crucial moments after a brain injury is vital. Brain damage often results from a “cascade” of problems, whereby brain cells and nerves are permanently destroyed not at the moment of head trauma but in the hours and days after it.

The new device was created by Infrascan. They explain in the product release page that the Infrascanner is non-invasive hand held device that help detect brain hematoma within the “golden hour.” This hour refers to the critical period after head trauma has occurred when medical professionals are forced to quickly assess the overall neurological condition of a victim. Medical mistakes at this time often have catastrophic consequences for victims who can see their condition deteriorate quickly if they do not receive proper medical attention. For example, if a football player is taken to the emergency room after taking a particularly hard hit, it is vital for the emergency room professionals to be able to asses immediately whether the head trauma is severe enough to demand certain follow up care. Our Chicago brain injury lawyers hope that these types of devices will be able to deliver on the promises and actually help professionals more accurately make those quick choices.

The company marketing the product explains that the hand-held device might be a particularly effective solution, because of its use of the light absorbing properties of hemoglobin and the non-ionizing nature of near-infrared technology. Essentially, the amount of light that is absorbed by a part of the brain that is not injured would be different than that part of the brain that is injured with blood collections. If a brain is healthy then the light absorption would be symmetrical. If a patient has suffered a brain injury resulting in intracranial bleeding, there will be irregularities in the reading.

It will be interesting to see if these devices enter widespread use, particularly in emergency rooms. It will also be important to track the effectiveness of the detection. If fewer patients report serious complications which could have been caught by earlier bleeding detection, then it might be a result of use of this device.

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The Levin & Perconti team was thrilled this week to learn that the Illinois Medical Malpractice Blog was named the Top Tort blog of the year by LexisNexis! It is a tremendous honor for which we owe thanks to our terrific readers. Thanks to all of your help in the latest online blog, the blog received the most votes and was named the top tort blog of 2011.

We had previously asked for help during the nomination round, when the top twenty five blogs were selected. Following that nomination round, an online poll was established to select the ultimate winner. More information about the contest and links to the other great blogs that were involved can be found at the LexisNexis Litigation Resource Community.

All of our Chicago injury lawyers were humbled to receive the honor, but we are happy that so many readers continue to check out the information available on our blogs. We work hard to provide useful, timely, and interesting information in a wide range of areas for injury victims, other personal injury lawyers, and all other local community members.

Thanks again for your continued support.

The Glen Ellyn Trib Local reported this week on a local community college professor who was honored by an Illinois brain injury group for his work helping head trauma victims in the classroom. As our brain injury attorneys consistently mention on this blog, victims of even minor brain injuries often have subtle but significant effects on their entire life. Those effects frequently involve challenges in retaining new knowledge. When these injuries affect children they often have learning difficulties for the rest of their lives, with untold impact on their future career plans and many other aspects of their life.

The learning challenges faced by these victims often require teachers and instructors to take special steps and engage in innovative techniques to help these individuals succeed educationally. The Illinois Brain Injury Association recently honors a College of DuPage instructor for his efforts in this very area. The professional taught heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration classes. He recently retired after thirty years on the job, and this award was in honor of his years of helping those with different learning styles.

One of the man’s students who himself suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) nominated the teacher for his work. The student was a former deputy sheriff patrolman was suffered his brain injury in a traffic accident while on duty. He had a long road to recovery and was unable to continue with the sheriff’s department after the accident. The student victim had to spend a year and a half at the hospital and in rehabilitation. As a result, he decided to pursue a career in heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC). However, following the TBI he faced many educational challenges, and was forced to relearn many basic skills—including walking and talking.

Many brain injury victims are faced with the daunting prospects of finding new careers after their injuries. The problems are made even worse when the victims have families who were counting on them to provide support. In this case the student’s family had a history in the trade industry, and so he decided to pursue an HVAC career. However, he was concerned that his learning challenges would be a problem. Fortunately, the student was fortunate to work with the college professional who was more than understanding.

The teacher understood his unique challenges, adapting certain learning protocols and working with the student hands on to ensure that lessons were carried out in ways that were most beneficial. Thanks to the professor’s help, the student completed his HVAC certificate, and is now working towards his associate’s degree. In fact the student continues work in the class as a lab assistant helping other students with their coursework.

The professor humbly accepted the praise by noting that he felt his adaption to help brain injury victims was part of his job. He noted that there is an increasing need for more innovative teaching methods, as more and more individuals are facing brain injury challenges. The teacher explained that many soldiers returning from active duty have suffered brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorders which require teachers to account for their specific situations.

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The dangers of sports related head injuries have filled many headlines recently. The combination of high-profile brain injury lawsuits, head injuries among professional and amateur athletes, and new research into these topics have all coalesced to raise the profile of these dangers over the last year or two. Every day brings new, relevant information for those involved in these matters.

That is why is was encouraging to see a new online effort that attempts to better catalog all relevant information for sports brain injury victims. Known as the “Sports Concussion Library,” the website seeks to offer a wide-range of information on sports head injuries. According to information provided at the site’s launch, the library is intended to be a collection of information for all actors, from researchers and athletes to parents, coaches, first responders, and educational institutions. As our Chicago brain injury lawyers have frequently explained when discussing these situations, it is incumbent upon all of these involved actors to take the necessary steps to educate themselves on the risks and work to prevent the harm.

The Library is a non-profit, free publically accessible information storehouse including journal articles, book chapters, documentaries, legislative news, and other information related to head injuries resulting from all athletic events. It also has links to relevant websites with basic concussion information and non-commercial educational sites.

For example, researchers into the area will likely find useful links to recent published research from the Sports Neurotrauma and Concussion Initiative Research Committee. Other university-affiliated research projects are also included. It is hoped that the research section of the site will become a “point of contact” for all those involved in these effects and better understand the causes and effects of these injuries.

The non-researcher will likely benefit from other aspects of the site. Parents are encouraged to watch relevant documentaries with their athlete children in order to learn more about the personal stories of those who have suffered as a result of these injuries. It is always difficult for parents to get their eager young athlete to step back and think about the consequences of not acting safely, but personal stories from other young people is always one of the more effective strategies. Parents, coaches, and personal trainers are encouraged to explore the free SCAT2 system and read general information about sports safety and common prevention and basic treatment steps.

The institutions which sponsor these athletic events (usually schools and universities) will also find important information in the library. These institutions must take an active role in preventing these injuries and providing proper treatment for athlete victims to ensure long-term harm is minimized. Along those lines, these institutions can find information on the latest relevant legislation and documentaries targeting the educational based component of the initiative. For example, on the website there is a list of sports-related concussion guidelines for teachers, “return to play” guidelines and an “ABC” primer of the problem. A fact sheet for school nurses is also provided with a concussions signs and symptoms checklist so that these important actors can step in and identify head injuries when they arise.

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Military officials have received some criticism over the past few weeks regarding its efforts to help soldiers who have suffered traumatic brain injuries. A report commissioned by the Department of Defense identified a variety of problems and inadequate coordination among current programs aimed at helping these soldiers. Traumatic brain injuries are some of the most common injuries faced by service members caught in roadside explosive blasts and other incidents leading to serious body trauma.

Last week a story in the Marine Corp Times shared the belief of some military members that use of hyperbaric oxygen helps relieve some of the symptoms of the injury. For example, one retired army sergeant reported that her migraines, memory loss, and facial paralysis were somewhat relived by breathing pure oxygen in a pressurized chamber. The woman suffered her head injury after the vehicle in which she was riding in Iraq ran over roadside bombs on two separate occasions. It wasn’t long after that she began having nerve problems and then severe headaches. However, she has seen improvements since receiving treatment in a hyperbaric chamber most often used to help scuba divers heal from the bends.

Many others share the sergeant’s support for the system of hyperbaric oxygen therapy—known as HBOT. These enthusiasts’ opinions are part of a growing body of anecdotal evidence suggesting that HBOT may help brain injury victims and those with post traumatic stress disorder. However, there has yet to be any scientific confirmation of the benefit. Military officials at the Pentagon explain that they will likely require peer-reviewed scientific analysis before fully endorsing the HBOT for soldiers who have experienced traumatic brain injuries.

HBOT is essentially the delivery of oxygen under pressure to the patient. Right now it is approved for a variety of conditions from soft tissue injuries and acute burns to carbon monoxide poisoning and the bends. It is also known to improve the effectiveness of some antibiotics by stimulating white blood cells and fighting infections. However, head injuries are not one of the fourteen currently approved uses.

Naturally, before endorsing the treatment for head trauma, officials will need scientific data void of colloquial support from those using the system currently. As the Navy surgeon explained, the military needed “to base therapies on objective clinical data that cannot be influenced by opinions of people who have benefitted.” Two studies on the very issues have actually been underway for two years, but results have yet to be released. The first effort was initiated in 2008 with results expected in 2010. Yet, those results have yet to be shared. The second effort was larger (with a $20 million budget), and it was supposed to began in January of 2010. However, it has apparently been moving quite slowly and only began a few months ago.

The slowness of the effort to verify HBOT benefits has advocates frustrated. We have frequently explained on these pages the large number of service members who are suffering from the effects of brain injuries with little valuable treatment options. One former army staff members vented, “we’ve got an epidemic here…and we’re not giving them the treatment they deserve.”

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Misconceptions abound about the frequency of personal injury lawsuits, their overall success rate, and the average amount awarded following a verdict or settlement. The sad truth is that many community members mistakenly believe that lawsuits are filed more frequently than they are, that plaintiffs win much more often than they do, and that the average size of the award is much larger than it actually is. Disconnect between perception and reality has many troubling consequences. For one thing, it allows incredibly ill-informed policy proposals to advance that take away rights from injury victims. In addition, the ignorance of reality of these issues leads to unfair and incorrect criticisms of victims who happen to file these injury lawsuits.

This sad reality was recently exhibited in a Missoulian article where a brain injury lawyer wrote in to defend his client who had been savaged in online comments. The victim had recently reached a $100,000 settlement following a bike accident that caused him to suffer a serious traumatic brain injury. The man was riding his bike to work when he hit a patch of ice that had not been properly cleared, causing him to slam into the pavement. He lost his job after the accident, because the injury made him unable to perform his duties.

Following the settlement an interview with the head of the Park District which was named in the suit was published. Many commentators proceeded to savage the injury victim following that interview. In large part because of the continued misperceptions about the civil justice system as it relates to these cases, the man was subjected to vitriolic comments by his fellow community members. He was bombarded simply because he used the civil justice system to reach an agreement with those whose negligence has caused him severe harm.

The victim’s attorney recently explained that many of the most basic facts about the case were misrepresented in the interview with the Board president and echoed by community attackers. For example, it was suggested that the man was riding a motorized bike which contributed to the accident; a fact that was simply untrue. It is surprising that such a simple (and easy to disprove) error was made and believed. Similarly, the Park president completely contradicted the considerable investigation was done at the site and it was found that there was no other navigable part of the sidewalk that had been properly cleared. The President suggested otherwise in his interview.

Also, the attorney was disturbed that so many community members would immediately assume that the victim was not actually hurt. In truth, the man suffered significant injury, as the impact broke his bicycle helmet in two places. He has cognitive difficulties and in still in vocational rehabilitation a year after the accident. It is disappointing that, in large part because of the misperceptions about the legal system, this victim not only has to deal with the consequences of his injuries but defend them against community members who make snap judgments about the harm he actually experienced. We all need to work to educate residents about the truth of the civil justice system.

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News & Insights reported last week on a new head injury lawsuit filed by former NFL players alleging misconduct on the part of league officials. The new injury lawsuit was filed on behalf of twelve former players against the National Football League claiming that the league did not properly inform them of the actual risks associated with concussions. In addition, the suit further alleges that the league officials used a drug repeatedly which was shown to increase the likelihood of brain bleeding in players who had already experienced head injuries. These accusations are similar to a few other lawsuits that have recently been filed against both the NFL and the NCAA related to their apparent lack of proper response to the prevention and treatment of brain injuries at the collegiate and professionals level.

In this latest suit, the players allege that the league officials had access to “overwhelming medical evidence” which suggested that on-field concussions led directly to long-term brain injuries that would have consequences for victims for their entire lives—long after their playing days were over. The plaintiffs suggest that the NFL could have protected players from some of these injuries or, at the very least, properly warned them of the specific dangers. The lawsuit claims that the league failed on both accounts, leading to severe consequences for many now-retired athletes.

While other brain injury lawsuits against the NFL have suggested that the league failed to do all it could have to prevent head injuries, this latest suit is the first to bring in the use of the drug Toradol. Toradol is a non-steroid anti-inflammatory that many players were given to reduce pain before a game. The drug apparently masked pain from injury—allowing players to continue in a game that they otherwise wouldn’t have been able to play in. However, medical researchers have found that the drug also induces cerebral bleeding (bleeding on the brain). That bleeding in turn significantly increases the risk that the player will experience a long-term brain injury. This serious negative effect makes it particularly disturbing to learn that many former players admit that they lined up in “cattle call” fashion to receive injections of the drug. All former players who were named in this suit claim that they suffer from a range of problems as a result of the NFL’s actions. Those include memory issues, depression, migraines, and other mental impairments.

The suit further alleges that the NFL was guilty of negligence, misrepresentation, and concealment as it related to these issues. In rebuttal, NFL officials have refuted all charges that they intentionally mislead players, and they explained that they continue to make safety a priority. Apparently this lawsuit was supposed to be filed months ago, but it was delayed as the involved players participated in a global traumatic brain injury compensation fund to help players hurt by these actions. However, the terms agreed to in a new collective bargaining agreement that was reached this year are different from those originally part of the compensation fund, prompting the filing of this matter.

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Over the past few weeks a website link has been passed along from many families via emails and social media networks. The site was created by a mother whose daughter experienced a rare, seemingly bizarre traumatic brain injury. The parent wished to explain the situation and warn others of the risks. It is a story that highlights both the serious consequences of all brain injuries and the ease with which they can strike community members of all ages.

The girl in this story was five years old last April when she was enjoying the day outside with her mother. While walking along, the young girl tripped fell, causing a small cut to the back of her head. It was seemingly a common slip and fall faced by youngsters every day. The little girl did not show any outwards signs of injury, as she got back up and kept playing. However, noticing that there was a cut, the girl’s mother decided to take her to the doctor’s office. She expected that she might need a stitch or two. Unfortunately, the injury would be much more severe than anyone would have expected.

It turns out that the little girl had a skull fracture. She was forced to be immediately airlifted to a larger hospital. A few hours later the girl was undergoing intense brain surgery. The head fracture sent skull fragments into her brain that had to be removed and repaired. The five-year old was forced to spend five days in an intensive care unit before stabilizing enough to be moved to a rehabilitation center. She then spent weeks re-learning how to walk, allow her memory to recover, and developing other basic mental abilities.

It was soon learned that the traumatic brain injury was caused by a hard plastic ponytail holder that the girl was wearing at the time of the fall. The object essentially included two hard plastic dice-like boxes (each less than an inch long) connected by a rubber tie. When her head made contact with the ground, the hard plastic cube opened up a 2 cm cut in the girl’s head. The hair accessory is apparently made of a material capable of breaking through a child’s skull. The mother suggests that the material is usually stronger than the skulls of children fourteen years old or younger. It is as if the child had fallen on a rock with sharp corners as edges. The mother explains that it essentially acts as a knife.

The young girl will require much more therapy, and it still remains unclear if she will have any long-term physical or mental impairments as a result of the accident. While this story is likely unique in the exact way that the injury arose, it is not unique in suggesting that this head trauma can be caused by a wide range of incidents. Our Chicago brain injury lawyers have worked with victims over the years that have experienced a range of accidents. If one were to categorize them, however, two trends emerge right away: car accidents and slip and falls.

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Last month an article was published in Neurosurgery—a leading medical research publication—on a new study which found an independent connection between brain damage and oxygen deprivation following a traumatic brain injury. The researchers explained how these injuries remain a leading cause of death, particularly among young people. Considering that younger community members are generally healthy, they are most likely to die in accidents like car crashes—traumatic brain injuries are often caused by those collisions.

The doctors explained that the consequences of these injuries are often made worse by damage that is delayed and develops hours to days after the actual injury. Doctors have long been working to better understand this secondary damage and figure out ways to prevent or minimize it. This new research has found that brain hypoxia (oxygen deprivation) is one of the causes of the harm. Therefore, there may be much to gain from pursuing strategies that minimize that hypoxia and return oxygen to the brain as soon as possible. For example, the researchers suggest that oxygen level monitoring should be conducted at the bedside of all victims of severe traumatic brain injuries. In that way, brain hypoxia may be diagnosed and corrected immediately when it arises, ultimately preventing irreversible brain damage. Our Chicago brain injury attorneys know that preventing the harm is of course the ideal, because there remains a significant difference in life for those who suffer some brain damage and severe brain damage.

The research published last month was the first to strongly suggest that this oxygen deprivation was an actual cause of the secondary damage, outside of other possible causes. Other research had suggested that hypoxia was seen when the damage occurred, but its causation had yet to be conclusively found. However, this latest work suggests that the effect of the hypoxia is independent of others—such as intracranial hypertension. The study which reached these conclusions involved the examination of 103 patients who has suffered traumatic brain injuries. All of the patients had various around-the-clock monitoring, including that which detects oxygen levels in the brain. The ultimate damage suffered by these victims was then measured and compared against others factors—such as their oxygen levels, intracranial hypertension, and cerebral perfusion pressure. Researchers found that damage seemed to be connected to the hypoxia outside of the possible other factors.

The Chicago injury lawyers at our firm understand the significance of this line of research. Hopefully, the hypoxia effect will be further confirmed, and steps will be taken to implement the findings into improved standard care protocols for these victims. Once medical professionals are aware of the effect of oxygen deprivation following injury and have the tools to prevent the hypoxia, then there is no reason not to do what is necessary to use the knowledge to help patients. Failure to adequately take advantage of this information is a form of negligence if it would be reasonable for the professionals to take certain steps which could prevent increased patient harm. So many families have their lives turned upside down by the significant and permanent consequences of these brain injuries. All research which results in better medical tools to help minimize at least some of that permanent harm should be welcomed.

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A growing number of athletes have now died as a result of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE)—a brain injury caused by repeated head trauma. CTE acts much like Alzheimer’s on the victim’s brain, leading to a wide range of problems. Time Magazine recently reported on the harm caused by CTE and the need to take a harder look at ways to help athletes who may have fallen victim.

CTE has been shown to lead to memory loss, psychosis, and impulsive behavior. It is this impulsive behavior that often prompts the troubling deaths of victims. For example, the latest victim was twenty eight year old NHL superstar Derek Boogaard who died last year of a drug and alcohol overdose. A few years ago a professional football player died after trying to jump into the back of a speeding pick-up truck. Before that a former wrestler murdered his wife and son before committing suicide. Last year a college football player committed suicide though he had never before exhibited any signs of distress, concussion or illness. All of these players were later diagnosed as having CTE upon post-mortem examination of their brains.

Our Chicago injury lawyers are concerned that what makes CTE particularly troublesome is that it can affect all athletes, even those not in the professional ranks. The cause of the injury is relatively simple. The brain sits in a fluid which helps absorb certain blows to the head. However, that fluid cannot absorb all blows, and there are times when head trauma causes the brain to twist and rattle in the head, often making contact with the inside of the skull. That contact can result in brain swelling and bleeding, both of which can have significant health consequences for victims. Nerve fibers are often damaged in these situations. Usually the brain tries to heal itself, but without proper recovery, there is often not enough time to heal. In other words, if a player suffers head damage and then keeps on playing, the minor dings and hits can continue cause damage and prevent the brain from healing itself.

That failure to heal results in deposits of tau proteins building up on the brain. Some doctors have referred to the proteins as “sludge” which leads to the mental problems characteristic of CTE. It is the same protein build up which causes Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. However, this damage cannot be diagnosed while one is alive, because tau proteins are impossible to detect inside a living person’s brain. Instead, it is only after their death that an autopsy can allow a brain to be sliced and microscopic protein build ups to be identified.

Our Chicago brain injury attorneys agree with the article author who notes that the best cure at the moment is smart prevention. All athletic programs must ensure tougher rules are in place to identify when a head injury has occurred and demand appropriate rest when identified. Also, rules limiting the most damaging type of hits must be in place to ensure that the game does not become deadly for those involved.

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In Illinois, Treating Brain Injuries May Now Be In Our Own Hands

Some traumatic brain injuries are impossible to miss. When the injury results in severe impairment (often from car accidents and falls), the victim is almost always rushed to appropriate medical providers who begin treating the problem. However, more mild brain accidents are not nearly as easy to detect. These subtle injuries can ultimately blossom to have serious long-term effects, but they are not readily visible. Children are often the victims of these injuries, obtained in any number of activities from sports to simple rough and tumble activities in the house. Our Illinois traumatic brain injury lawyers believe that it is important for families, guardians, medical providers, teachers, and others to appropriately identify these injuries when they occur so that proper treatment can be had.

A research study of child brain injuries that was published in the latest edition of Pediatrics and summarized in Med Page Today, found that chronic headaches are a crucial symptom of traumatic brain injuries in young people. Interestingly, the headaches were most common among young female victims and teenagers. The University of Washington researchers who conducted the effort explained that 59% of girls with brain injuries experienced the headaches. For teenagers (aged 13 to 17) there was also a sizeable effect, with 46% experiencing chronic headaches.

This research confirms that children experience the same headache problems that have already been found to exist among adults. This latest Child Health After Injury study examined over 650 injured children and their headache reports. Some of the participants had suffered head trauma while others (the control group) had suffered arm injuries. In total, researchers found that headache prevalence was significantly higher three month after head injuries than arm injuries. Researchers were particularly interested in the fact that the headaches seem to affects girls and teens more than other groups. This suggests that there may be some link with migraines. Migraines are much more common among post-pubescent girls (but not boys).

Also, the difference in effect between age groups suggests that underdeveloped brains are affected differently by this trauma. For example, the headaches persisted longest for older children when the injury was milder. The opposite was true for children under the age of twelve. For this youngest group, the headaches were most severe and lasted longest when the injury was more severe. This finding is a bit counterintuitive and will likely require further research to parse out more specifically.

Of course, the overall findings are not necessarily surprising, as head injuries would intuitively be expected to cause more headaches. However, our Chicago brain injury attorneys know that this type of information factors into potential legal damages when the injury was caused, at least in part, by the wrongdoing of another. The long-term consequences for even these mild injuries should not be underestimated. Even those who experienced minimal head trauma may have their lives made qualitatively worse by the injury. In fact, these headaches were found to be more common after mild injury than severe head injury. This difference suggests that the pathologies of the different grades of brain injury may be different.

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It is one thing to be ignorant of the risks of sports head injuries, it is another to knowingly fail to take those risks as seriously as necessary. According to a Fox News story this week, many brain injury researchers have voiced displeasure at the fact that U.S. soccer officials are not taking new evidence of the effect of their activities on player health into enough account. As our Chicago brain injury attorneys have discussed over the past few weeks, results of a high-profile study suggest that many soccer players may face serious long-term problems as a result of frequent “heading” of the soccer ball.

Dr. Michael Lipton, the lead author of the study recently explained that the involved soccer officials were too dismissive of the study’s findings—a perspective that may ultimately place more players than necessary in danger of long-term brain injuries. As we earlier reported, the study found significant brain trauma in players who frequently headed the ball. The trauma was indicative of that found in most concussion patients. White matter in the brain that is responsible for a variety of memory, vision, and attention functions were affected.

The “frequency” of heading which was shown to have long-term effects was roughly 1,000-1,500 headers per year. Those involved in the study were all young professionals who played in amateur soccer leagues and who had been involved in the sport from a very young age. Of course, the participants were not individuals whose injuries made them incapable of functioning in society. Instead, the harm was more subtle, often affecting in small ways certain mental abilities. Essentially, the doctors were concerned that the affected players were not as mentally sharp as they could be had they not sustained the damage.

The doctors also noted that there were many similarities between these accidents and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) frequently suffered by football players. CTE is virtually undetectable in brain scans of living people; however the damage can be seen in autopsies. Essentially, CTE causes accumulations of tau proteins (as in Alzheimer’s patients) that kill brain cells responsible for emotions, moods, and executive functioning. Clearly, considering the potential severity of consequences caused by these soccer head injuries, those involved in the sport should address the matter aggressively.

However, that may not be the case. The executive director of US Youth Soccer questioned the studies variability. He noted that “the main concern we have is the data isn’t quite specific enough in regards to heading as the cause of concussions.” In other words, the director suggests that other impacts may have caused the trauma. The researchers addressed that point by explaining that study participants were measured for other actions throughout the year which may have led to brain trauma. Factoring in those other potential variables returned the same result. The doctor announced clearly the research team was “confident that the white matter damage we saw came from heading.” The Illinois brain injury lawyers at our firm know that it is vital for this research to be taken into account by those charged with keeping players safe.

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Sports and Traumatic Brain Injuries

In Illinois, Treating Brain Injuries May Now Be In Our Own Hands

This week Lexis Nexis announced the finalists in the Top 25 Tort Blogs of 2011 contest. Thanks to all of the nominations two of our blogs made the cut and were selected as some of the best legal blogs in the country. Both the Illinois Injury Lawyer Blog and Illinois Medical Malpractice Blog made the list and will now advance to the final round.

Our entire team at Levin & Perconti is proud of the honor. We work hard to ensure that all of our blogs are consistently updated with informative, interesting, and helpful information from our corner of the nation and throughout the country. Consistent online interaction is an important way that we keep abreast of important developments and connect with our community.

Now that our blogs have advanced to the final round, we are asking for you help one last time. For the rest of this week, votes are being collected to winnow down the current list to a single TOP tort blog of the year. Lexis Nexis has created an online poll where searchers can select a single blog with votes being calculated at the end of the week. Before voting you may be prompted to “log in,” BUT you can do so using your Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, or Twitter account. That means that you do not even to fill out new information.

The voting for the contest ends this Friday at Midnight Eastern Time. Please take a second to click this link, and Vote for the Illinois Injury Blog or Illinois Medical Malpractice Blog.

Many thanks for your support and continued readership of all of the Levin & Perconti blogs.

Our Chicago injury attorneys help clients who suffer a wide range of problems caused by the negligence of others. In many more cases than not, those who did not act appropriately in any given situation will eventually decide that a settlement is the best course. When that occurs we work with our clients to reach the best result based on their goals. In other cases, no amicable settlement can be reached, and so the case proceeds to trial. At trial the specific evidence is presented which indicates the misconduct that took place and the harm suffered by the plaintiffs. In some cases there may be a separate “injury” phase, after liability has already been determined, where both sides present information only on the extent of the harm caused as a result of the negligence. For example, in the traumatic brain injury context, that may include the suffering of family members after losing a loved one as a result of the injury. These situations require jurors to truly get into the situation of the victims to properly gauge a fair award.

One new movie that has garnered much critical acclaim deals with this exact situation—a family coping with the consequences of a loved one who suffered a traumatic brain injury. The Descendants is led by George Clooney who plays the husband of a woman who falls into a deep coma after a skiing accident. The movie then proceeds to describe the ramifications for him and his family of two daughters. They are forced to grapple with the diagnosis that the likely outcome is not good, and they are likely to lose their loved one. This week the Sunny Observer explained how the movie tackles these subjects, indicating how few films ever delve deep into these issues which affect many residents.

Palliative care professionals explain that, like the movie, the consequences for those closest to the victims are intense, with entire lives changing in the blink of an eye. Fortunately, human perseverance is often underestimated, and many family members rise up and muster as much courage as necessary to deal with the aftermath. As one psychiatrist familiar with the situation explained, “the shock of the situation may keep people from fully grieving, and the parade of obligations and responsibilities may actually divert them from their deep emotions until weeks after a person has died.”

In the movie, the husband is forced to grapple with the claim that his wife’s lower and upper stem brain functions have not responded. The victim continues to breathe for days after the accident on her own. However, in the movie the woman’s living will indicates that no extraordinary measures should be taken to save her life. That means that she cannot be put on life support to maintain her breathing if it falters. Our Illinois brain injury lawyers know that some families face this exact situation, of being forced to watch as a loved one slowly loses the ability to breathe on their own after suffering a head injury. The emotional suffering for those family members is always difficult to quantify but undoubtedly intense.

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Our Chicago brain injury lawyers know that it is often misleading to categorize legal actions with blanket labels, because those labels often mask the true complexity of many underlying medical problems. For example, an article published recently in Family Practice News discussed the truth about traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). Contrary to the public perception of some, TBIs are not a single problem but actually a catch-all term for a wide range of issues. This important distinction has implications on both the legal issues connected to these injuries as well as the medical treatment options for traumatic brain injury victims.

In the new article the doctor explains that developments in treating many brain injuries has been slow coming, in part, because doctors have been a bit naïve in thinking of the harm as all coming from one disease. He went on to note that, “People have argued that we are treating traumatic brain injury as if we were treating cancer as a single disease. Maybe we need to do classifications.” It is only logical to assume that failing to identify the different types of brain injury would mean that those differences are ignored or downplayed when treatment options are researched. Yet understanding the intricate details unique to each type of brain injury is likely crucial to developing treatment plans that are actually effective.

For example, the author explains how there are various ways for a patient to be identified as having a traumatic brain injury following use of the well-known “Glasgow Coma Scale.” Those possibilities include: diffuse swelling, diffuse axonal injury, epidural hematoma, contusion, subdural hematoma, and subarachnoid or intraventricular hemorrhages. Failure to understand brain injuries in terms of various subgroups may result in underutilization of certain helpful treatment.

The doctor identified one example. In clinical trials conducted as part of the National Acute Brain Injury Study, the benefit of early hypothermia to stop the spread of brain damage was not identified as effective. The cooling of the body was thought to act as a neuroprotectant, stopping the chain reaction of brain damage that often results in tragic injuries than can never be repaired. However, when analyzed by subgroup, it became clear that those patients who had hematomas had clear benefits from the hypothermia. Conversely, those patients with diffuse brain injuries seemed to do worse as a result of the body cooling. Together the results seemed to wash out when brain injuries were examined as the same. Clearly then, failure to understand the distinctions when it comes to these injuries may mean that good treatments are ignored and that actual harmful treatments are not identified.

Each Chicago medical malpractice attorney at our firm understands that these same distinctions may be crucial in determining the appropriate standards of care that should be applicable in all cases where the conduct of medical professionals may be at issue in the case. Treating all brain injuries as if they are the same has very real ramifications of the patients involved and reasonable steps must be taken to ensure that these mistakes in identification do not lead to harm that could have been prevented.

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Earlier this week we discussed the somewhat startling new research which found that soccer players may be at risk of developing sports brain injuries as a result of repeatedly “heading” the soccer ball during games and practice. Our Chicago brain injury lawyers explained how this posed significant concerns for student athletes who may have been involved in these games for years. Considering that only a few headers a day over the course of a period of time was shown to result in some brain damage, it is imperative for those involved in these sports to be aware of the dangers and prepared to take action if necessary. Even slight head trauma, when repeatedly applied, can have serious consequences for victims. As a result, there is no excuse for all those involved in the safety of players—from coaches and referees to school administrators and trainers—to have proper procedures in place to identify players who may have suffered a brain injury and to ensure they are properly treated.

As new information about these injuries spread, many are asking questions about the long-term consequences that may have afflicted some. For example, professional soccer players likely have had immense numbers head contact over the years. The long-term affect that the small , but consistent, trauma has had is as of yet unknown. But that is not stopping some from making serious claims about how some professional players may have been affected. Opposing Views News this week discussed the tragic case of one of the legends of soccer—Gary Speed. Speed was only 42-years old when he took his own life last week. He left behind a wife and two teenage children. His death was shocking to all those who knew him, and has led to many questions being asked about why his life ended as it did.

One explanation that some have already mentioned, was that he may have suffered brain damage as a result of his many years of play. Speed was known specifically for his unique ability to head the ball—over his years of playing it actually became one of his calling cards. Speed is certainly not the first well known football player, boxer, or hockey player to commit suicide. As the story explains a condition known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy has been found after autopsies were conducted on players who have taken their own lives on nearly two dozen occasions. In February of this year former Pro-Bowl safety for the Chicago Bears, Dave Dureson, also committed suicide, and he was found to have this traumatic brain injury at the time of his passing.

Suicides often present an incredibly complicated mix of mental, social, emotional, physical, and psychological issues. They likely cannot be explained solely by pointing to one issue. However, our Chicago injury lawyers believe that it is not at all unlikely that brain injuries may at least play a role in these incidents. Many mysteries of the brain remain, and it is premature to rule out anything yet when it comes to understanding the consequences of these injuries.

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When an Illinois brain injury at birth occurs and results in a brain accident lawsuit, in many more cases than not the problem is rooted in misconduct that occurs in a few crucial moments before the new addition is officially born. These cases always seem painfully tragic, because they represent cases where a child developed normally for nine months only to have a lifetime problem develop just before entering the world. Families dealing with these situations often rightfully feel heartbroken that their loved one will be forced to deal with a wide range of problems.

Fortunately, more and more information is being learned each and every day by medical researchers which shed light on the specific actions that do and do not cause these injuries to develop. For example, Reuters discussed this week new evidence that suggest forceps use may be crucial in helping keep babies safe. When a mother is undergoing a difficult childbirth, the doctor often has a few options on the table when deciding how to handle the problem. One of those choices is between use of old-fashioned forceps to help in extraction versus vacuum deliveries. In addition, C-sections are also an option when significant emergencies arise that require the baby be extracted immediately.

Over the past few years forceps use has fallen out of favor, and vacuum and C-section deliveries have increased. These trends may be misguided, ultimately leading to more newborn seizures and brain injuries than necessary. A researcher at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine explained that the increased use of vacuum deliveries and C-sections is surprising, considering that there is little to no evidence that these methods of birth are safer in most circumstances. In fact, for some births, the opposite might be true. The researcher and his team studied more than 400,000 births and found that those with deliveries using forceps were forty five percent less likely to have an infant brain injury result when compared with vacuum pump and C-section births. These injuries are often caused by seizures. However, there was one caveat: C-sections seemed to minimize the risk of certain bleeding around the brain—known as subdural hemorrhages.

The doctor explained that birth seizures are usually caused by oxygen deprivation. In many situations, the child can be born quicker using forceps that with a vacuum pump or via C-section. The quicker that the child is born, the sooner that medical professionals can take emergency action to restore proper oxygen flow to the young brain. In this way, the injuries may more often be prevented. At the end of the day, the doctors involved believe that patients should discuss all options with their doctor and that a plan be in place ahead of time. That way, if an emergency situation arises, there will be less confusion on the steps that need to be taken. Unfortunately, the situations that result in significant (and preventable) harm to children are those where no plan was in place ahead of time. Many doctors then fail to act properly (or quickly) leading to brain damage and lifetime harm to the child.

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Our Chicago injury lawyers were shocked last summer when word spread about the horrific stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair. The popular country music duo Sugarland was set to perform in South Bend last August at the outdoor venue, and a large group had gathered near the stage and in the bleachers in anticipation of the show. Tragically, due to high winds, the temporary stage on which the concert was supposed to take place collapsed before the show began. The results were catastrophic. Four people were killed, including Illinois residents, and at least forty four others were injured—many of them seriously. Many of those hurt suffered serious brain injuries in the tragedy. Traumatic brain injuries are common in accidents such as this, which involve large heavy objects making contact with the head of the victim.

Expectedly, at least fifty different plaintiffs have filed lawsuits against various defendants in the aftermath of this tragedy. For example, one twenty-one year old victim filed a brain injury lawsuit after she was hurt in the event. The young woman spent several days on a ventilator, broke her collarbone, broke several ribs, punctured a lung, and suffered brain trauma after being hit by falling stage equipment. The victim is still undergoing therapy and admits that her road to recovery is a long one.

Many other legal actions have been commenced by the various individuals hurt in the accident and the families of those killed. When large scale accidents like this occur, there are quite a few tricky legal issues to sort through. For one thing, many different defendants are usually named, because there are usually multiple acts of negligence which leads to the harm. For example, in this case, there are at least thirteen named defendants. Those defendants include the band itself, the state government which put on the fair, the companies involved in building the stage, promoting the event, and various others.

Our Chicago brain injury lawyers know that as the case unfolds a variety of things may happen. A closer look at the evidence could reveal that some of those parties actually were not liable for the tragedy and could not have prevented any harm. If that is uncovered those defendants may be dismissed from the suit. On the other hand, it could become clear that many different parties failed to act reasonably, with each breach leading to at least partial blame for allowing the victims to suffer injury. It will likely need to be determined which entities had the power to stop the concert due to the high winds. The state officials who were running the show probably could and should have understood the risks posed to concert-goers because of the weather and canceled the event. Similarly, the contract signed between the band and the event organizers suggest that the band actually had the final say on whether or not the event was to proceed. Possessing the power to cancel the event and failing to do so may mean that the band bears some responsibility.

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