Chicago Brain Injury Lawyer Blog

Our Chicago brain injury lawyer was not surprised to come across an article by MSNBC regarding the use of disclaimers in athletic waivers. Athletic waivers are typically used when a child wishes to participate in athletics at school or through another program. Before allowing a child to play, most schools require that he or she present written authorization from his or her parents. This authorization comes in the form of a waiver that is composed by the school and sent home with the student. The MSNBC writer who authored the article recounted how a friend came to him with one of these disclaimers that said, among other things, that by signing, students and parents acknowledged that the sport in question is dangerous and can lead to all manner of injuries or even death. What really gave our Chicago brain injury attorney pause, however, was a line near the bottom that stated that the signer understood that participation in the sport “may result not only in serious injury but a serious impairment of my future abilities...generally to enjoy life.”

What this piece of the disclaimer refers to is something that lawyers have come to know as hedonic damages or loss of enjoyment of life (LEL) damages. They refer to money paid by a defendant who is found liable for someone's injuries to compensate the victim for the lost ability to enjoy certain aspects of life. The idea comes from an economist named Stan V. Smith, who argued that people who are permanently injured lose more than just wages and the cost of medical treatment. Often, they lose their ability to engage in the things that once brought them pleasure. The example given in the article is an amateur musician who, due to her injuries, is no longer physically capable of playing her instrument. Although she has not lost any wages, she has lost an ability to enjoy life that she once possessed. Smith has argued that that lost enjoyment should be compensated. Such arguments have not fallen on deaf ears, and in fact, most judges agree that these are and should be compensable damages.

Unfortunately, parents do not always read these disclaimers closely enough to fully comprehend what their signature means. Sometimes, it is not until a sports injury actually occurs that parents really look at the language in that form, and for some, it may deter them from ever even trying to file a lawsuit. However, this language does not always mean the end of any possibility of recovery. Courts do not always allow for such a complete disclaimer of liability. Therefore, if someone is injured after signing one of these forms, he or she should still speak to an Illinois personal injury lawyer about whether or not the disclaimer is a valid waiver of rights. An experienced attorney will be able to determine whether or not the waiver can be challenged in court and whether it is likely to be upheld. An opportunity to recover for injuries should never be disregarded, especially where the injuries are severe enough to permanently impair the victim's quality of life.

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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

Most legal cases that garner widespread public attention are constitutional law cases. The vast majority of legal cases will have decisions that only apply to the individual parties in the suit. For example, if a local resident suffers a traumatic brain injury in a car accident and sues the other driver, the resolution of that case hinges only on what happened between those two parties. The ultimate resolution may be interesting, but it has little effect on others.

Our Chicago brain injury lawyers appreciate that constitutional challenges are different. There is much more interest in cases where constitutional arguments are made, because they often implicate laws passed by state and federal legislative bodies. If the laws themselves are somehow found to violate principles within the constitution, then the effects will go far beyond the individual parties named in the suit.

However, there is often confusion about the specific way that these cases are brought. Behind each major constitutional challenge there are individual plaintiffs who are challenging a law based on their own specific situation. Therefore, technically, even decisions in constitutional cases only apply to individual parties, not the public as a whole.

For example, The News-Leader reported this week on a high profile state constitutional challenge in Missouri. The state Supreme Court heard arguments on a challenge to a state law that placed an arbitrary cap on non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases. The legal challenge is an extension of a brain injury case, filed by a family who argued that their son’s permanent injuries were caused by inadequate care being provided by a medical team during his birth. The boy suffers from cerebral palsy, cannot walk or talk, and will need 24-hour care throughout his life. The jury in that case agreed that the injuries were caused by inadequate care. They reached a verdict for the plaintiff and awarded them $1.45million in non-economic damages.

However, because of the cap law in the state, the majority of that non-economic damage award was cut. Following the imposition of the law, the family appealed, claiming that the law itself is unconstitutional.

Of course, much attention in the state has been focused on that individual case, because the implications of the Supreme Court decision will have ramifications in all future cases. Yet, technically whatever the court decides will only apply to the individual families in this case. Even if they rule the law unconstitutional, that judicial ruling does not automatically mean that the law suddenly does not exist. Instead, what it means is that there is legal precedent in the state (at the highest level) which rejects the laws applicability. Technically, the state can still seek to apply the law that is one the books, even after this ruling. However, if they do so, the plaintiffs can appeal the imposition. They are essentially guaranteed a win on their appeal because of the high court precedent which finds the law unconstitutional. Therefore, while these constitutional challenges technically only affect the named parties, the practical effect is to make the law unenforceable.

At the end of the day, these are interesting but moot legal distinctions. Constitutional challenges change the legal landscape for all community members. When it comes to challenges to cap laws, the consequences of that decision will affect all those in the future who may seek to hold others liable for wrongdoing in the civil justice system.

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It Remains Difficult For Some Victims to Receive Compensation For Their Harm

Respected National Think Tank Criticizes Damage Caps

The Capital Journal online shared information on a new book that our Illinois brain injury lawyers might be of interest to many local families who have dealt with these injuries. The book, “Louis: Amended,” was written by a woman who suffered a unique brain injury while a twenty-two year old journalism graduate student. The woman was getting ready to begin work at a newspaper when she suffered a severe “brain bleed.” She explains, “It just happened out of the blue—kind of like a stroke.”

The woman was prone to these injuries since childhood, having suffered previous bleeds both as a young girl and a teenager. In the past, the bleeds were less serious, resulting in temporary vision problems and headaches. While obviously frightening, she would recover quickly from those previous episodes. The woman’s mother explains that they had visited professionals about the condition. However, doctors apparently advised the family not to operate to fix the problem, because they assumed the injury would just cauterize on its own.

Unfortunately, that advice turned out to be troublesome.

When she suffered the bleed as a graduate student, it proved far more serious than anything she had experienced in the past. The episode was severe and caused her permanent physical weakness, dizziness, hearing problems, vision problem, and headaches. She also had facial paralysis.

Recovery was a very slow process. The woman spent over four years undergoing various tests, having operations performed, and engaged in therapy. The first operation was for the removal of a cluster of vessels in her brain stem. Subsequent operations were performed to try to minimize some of the symptoms of the injury—to correct a wandering eye and improve movement on the left side of her face. The facial paralysis is a particularly difficult injury from which to recover. To this day that woman cannot blink or close her left eye. Doctors have sown it shut partially so that her cornea remains moist. This results in double vision. Special lenses in her glasses are used to help correct it but the lenses are not a perfect fix.

The woman is now in the process of getting a doctorate in creative writing. “Louise: Amended” is slated to be released next month. In the text, the woman shares her story dealing with the injury and its aftermath. The book is a personal one, as the author explains, “I lay it all out there. I include a lot of potentially embarrassing stuff about myself and I don’t cast myself in the most flattering light, so I hope people don’t misunderstand what I’m trying to say.”

Each Chicago brain injury attorney at our firm understands that while all of these injuries are unique, brain injury victims often share a special bond after having to deal with the consequences of relearning basic skills. However, no matter how difficult the recovery or long-term consequences, we know that many local Illinois brain injury victims exhibit incredible perseverance and go on to lead fulfilling lives. As this author explained, it is possible to lead happy lives after these incidents, even while still wishing for things to be different.

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Family Struggles to Find Support Services After Brain Injury

Many Illinois Brain Injury Victims Never Fully Recover

In many ways brain injury treatments remain a mystery. Medical researchers have uncovered various different approaches for helping those who have suffered traumatic brain injuries. However, most treatments are geared toward preventing further deterioration of the individual’s condition. There are far fewer verifiable ways for medical providers to actually “cure” these injuries. Many of the nation’s best minds on this subject are currently in the middle of a wide range of research efforts which will hopefully prove fruitful down the road.

Part of the challenge involves trying to get the body to re-grow or rejuvenate cells and nerves in the brain that have died. This is no easy feat. However, as a new story this week from Fox News explains, stems cells may prove crucial in figuring out ways to actually spur injured brains to heal themselves.

The article shared the story of one girl who suffered a serious brain injury when she was a toddler. The girl accidentally fell into the family swimming pool. The one-year old was unconscious and without oxygen for an incredibly long period of time—at least 45 minutes. As a result of the prolonged deprivation, the girl was thrown into a vegetative state. She could not perform even basic tasks like sitting or speaking. Her body was also contorted.

In most cases, there are little doctors can do to help spur recovery.

Our Chicago brain injury attorneys know, however, that one potential cure for these situations involves the regenerative power of stem cells. The cells may be able to spur regeneration in various parts of the body, including the brain. Fortunately, in this case, the girl’s family has fortuitously banked the girl’s cord blood after her birth. The blood contains stem cells that might be used down the road in potential medical treatments.

Fifteen months after the girl’s injury, doctors reinfused the cord blood into the girl’s body as part of an experimental trial. According to the mother, the results were clear within days. The mother explained that the day after the treatment her daughter “was excited, walking better…she spontaneously started talking to me. We didn’t think we’d ever have to use [the cord blood]. We just saw the value in it and decided it was money well spent.”

It has been four years since the tragic near-drowning, and according to observers, the girl’s recovery has been nothing short of remarkable. The now-five year old is expected to start kindergarten in the fall. The recovery has been truly astonishing considering that few children survive at all following 45 minutes of oxygen deprivation, let alone fully recover without long-term consequences.

The Illinois brain injury lawyers at our firm have previously written about the growing popularity of cord blood banking. The more stories like this that are shared will likely boost the popularity of the process even more. Hopefully, the lessons learned from cases like this one will go a long way to helping medical professionals pinpoint exactly how these brain injuries can be recovered from in all contexts. At the very least, these stories are clear indications of the potential benefit of stem cells and the need for medical experts to devote as many resources as possible to studying their potential uses.

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Use of Cooling to Help Brain Injury in Newborns Gains Popularity

Red Blood Cell Boosts May Prove Critical in Brain Injury Improvement

This week our Chicago brain injury attorneys were disappointed, but not surprised, that the U.S. House of Representatives voted to pass House Resolution 5. H.R. 5 is the bill loaded with “reform” measures to take away legal rights from those injured by the malpractice of others. Considering that many brain injury victims are hurt by the unreasonable actions of medical care providers, this bill, if it actually becomes law, would be incredibly damaging to local families.

The vote, which took place on Thursday, ended with 223 for and 181 against the measure. As usually happens in Congressional votes (particularly high-profile votes like this one), party affiliation was clearly at play, with the House Republican leadership pressing its members to support the proposal. However, in an advocacy update sent following the bill’s passage, the American Association for Justice explained that, comparatively, the final vote actually represents a strong tally for those against the measure. Ten Republicans voted against the measure and another three voiced their disapproval with “present” votes. In addition, the Democratic caucus, usually a bit less disciplined on these issues, was strongly united in opposition, with only seven Democrats switching to vote for the proposal.

While it is always disappointing to see a disastrously misguided proposal like this advance beyond any chamber of Congress, there is still a long way to go. A Senate version of the bill has to pass out of that chamber before the bill is even presented to the President where he will have to sign the bill. The House of Representatives, with its large Republican majority, was always the one chamber with members who are most hostile to civil justice fairness. The Democrats maintain control of the Senate, and therefore civil justice advocates are on firmer ground when trying to defend the community member rights in that body.

Even then, our Chicago brain injury attorneys were encouraged to learn from the AAJ that the President has also spoken out on the measure. In a Statement of Administrative Policy on H.R. 5, the President sent a letter than reaffirmed his support for the rights of those hurt by the negligence of others. The statement explained that the goals of those who claim to support H.R. 5—patient safety, prompt compensation for those hurt, costs savings—are not at all met by the actual policies proposed in the bill.

In fact, the administrative statement is quite clear in its denunciation of tactics outlined in H.R. 5. For example, the statement noted that the “Administration opposes placing artificial caps on malpractice awards which will prevent patients and other claimants who have been wrongfully harmed from receiving just compensation.” It goes on to note that if the bill makes it to his desk, the President’s advisors would recommend that he veto the measure.

These represent good indicators that the measure will not actually become law at this time. However, the advocacy efforts must remain strong. This is an election year, which means that it is incredibly important to elect representatives (and a President) that understands the role of the justice system in keeping community members safe. Similar tort reform measures will no doubt be proposed again down the road, and all advocates must do the work now to prevent those policies from gaining traction.

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Impartial Organizers Lining Up Against House Resolution 5

H.R. 5 Medical Malpractice Proposals Shot Down By Committee Testimony

Brain injury lawsuits take many forms. In most traumatic brain injury situations—such as those caused in falls or car accidents—lawsuits name other car drivers or property owners as defendants. The defendant is the one who acted unreasonably in any given situation. In other brain injury cases, perhaps less often, medical professionals, hospitals, and clinics are named as defendants. These are types of medical malpractice cases where the plaintiff is arguing that their brain injury was caused (or made worse) by inadequate care being provided by those who were charged with helping them to recover.

This week, for example, Mercury News reported on the end of a medical malpractice trial involving a woman who suffered a severe brain injury as a result of a series of misguided decisions by her medical caregivers. The plaintiff in this case first visited a medical foundation complaining of migraines. Her doctors at the foundation told her that she needed to have an angiogram performed. An angiogram is a brain test that uses dye inserted into veins in the brain to test the functionality of those veins. The medical professionals told the patient that an abnormal vein in her brain was likely the cause of her migraines.

Doing what any reasonable patient would do in the situation, the women heeded her doctors’ advice and had the procedure performed at a nearby hospital. The medical foundation which ordered the test lacked the resources to perform the procedure themselves.

Sadly, the angiogram did not go well. When the dye was inserted into the woman’s veins, she suffered a stroke that threw her into a coma. She stayed in the coma for two weeks. When she finally awoke she discovered that she had lost all function in her arms and legs.

It was soon learned that the angiogram itself had been completely unnecessary. The abnormal vein had nothing to do with the migraines that the woman had complained about. Even worse, the evidence suggested that the doctors who ordered the test should have known that the angiogram was unnecessary. Their mistake in ordering the unnecessary test, therefore, caused the harm that befall the woman.

The woman eventually filed a medical malpractice lawsuit. In arguing the case, the patient’s attorney explained that the medical foundation’s ordering of an unnecessary and risky test was a clear cause of the woman becoming a quadriplegic. The jury agreed, and awarded the woman $22 million. The significant sum was reached in large part because the plaintiff now requires around-the-clock care and will need it for the rest of her life. However, a large part of the award will be cut because of arbitrary damage caps in the state.

If you have suffered brain injury in any form in our area and suspect that this might have been caused by the misconduct of others, please consider contacting our Chicago brain injury lawyers to learn more. We have vast experience in these cases and can explain how the law might apply in your specific situation. There is nothing to lose, so please reach out today.

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Med Page Today reported on new brain injury research out of the University of Southern California. According to reports on the project published in the March issues of Archives of Surgery, researchers believe that boosting red cell production may help patients who have developed brain injuries. Our Illinois brain injury attorneys understand that each and every study which offers hope for improving the condition of those with these injuries is good news.

This particular research effort involved testing the effect on traumatic brain injury patients who received a red cell production stimulant known as erythropoiesis-stimulating agents. Specifically, researchers found that those who were given the stimulant had a 75% lower mortality risk than those not given the agents. Of course decreased mortality rates to that large of a degree suggests that the red cell effect is quite robust.

The MedPage analysis of the research effort is a bit technical. However, the article explains that animal models suggest that the stimulant decreases secondary neuronal damage on top of improving overall outcomes for TBI victims. As our Chicago traumatic brain injury lawyers have often explained, it is the secondary damage is just as severe as the harm from the initial trauma which causes the TBI. The secondary damage, often referred to as a “tsunami,” leads to subsequent brain damage that is often never able to be reversed. Limiting the tsunami has long been an important medical goal, which would go a long way to improving the long-term living conditions for brain injury victims.

This latest research effort produced findings similar to a retrospective effort that the researchers had previously conducted. In that earlier effort, the investigators examined records of patients who had received the stimulating agent and compared them with patients who had not. A large survival benefit was found in those cases.

This most recent research project was actually spurred by an effort to verify the retrospective research project. This most recent project involved observational studies of patients who were admitted to an area hospital over a two year period. In total, 566 patients were examined. Of that group, 75 were giving the red cell boosting agent. Researchers then compared those individuals with a matched control group. The controls were selected to represent patients as similar as possible to those who had received that agent. There were no differences between the two groups in regards to demographics, severity of the injury, or similar measures. Of course this is important to isolate one single cause—in this case the stimulant—as being the actual factor responsible for any differences in the outcomes of the two groups of patients.

Of those two groups only 9.3% of patients who received the agent died while at the hospital compared with 25.3% of the control group. There was seemingly no major difference in a variety of other complications between the two groups, such as deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolisms, pneumonia, acute renal failure, and respiratory distress syndrome.

The researchers are next hoping to conduct n actual randomized experiment along the same lines as this latest effort. The randomized experiment would offer even stronger evidence, because this effort involved patients who either did or did not receive the agent at the discretion of their own physician, not random chance.

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Our Chicago brain injury attorneys have often shared how traumatic brain injury risks are highest for the youngest and oldest community members. Research data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have repeatedly made this point. Those under four years old and over seventy five years old are particularly at risk for suffering severe head trauma. In both groups the two most common causes are falls and automobile accidents.

For seniors, falls are particularly risky.

It is no wonder why.

Seniors often face mobility problems as well as more bone, joint, and muscle issues. A lifetime takes a toll on the body. Tumbles that a younger person would be able to recover from might prove particularly serious for seniors.

For that reason it is incumbent upon all those who are in a position to help prevent seniors from falling from acting reasonably to do so. Similarly, those who have an obligation to maintain premises frequented by seniors have a duty to keep the location reasonable safe to eliminate preventable falls. Unfortunately, every Illinois brain injury lawyer at our firm understands that many care centers and property owners fail in these regard. At times that failure results in real harm to local seniors.

For example, last week two Illinois injury attorneys at our firm settled a lawsuit on behalf of the family of a senior who died after suffering a brain injury in a fall. In the case an 87-year old man was leaving an adult day care facility in the Chicago area. The man was getting ready to board a bus which was supposed to take him home. The senior had mobility problems, and so his care plan specifically called for caregivers at the adult day care center to provide assistance at these times. When the accident occurred, in mid-July in 2010, the man did not have any help from caregivers at the adult day care center.

The lack of assistance was not the only factor that contributed to the man’s fall and brain injury. The curb ramp at the location was also unsafe and dangerous. Investigations into the fall reveal that the curb ramp dimensions violated building codes—the longitudinal slopes and side slopes exceed allowable ratios. The ramp was also lacking markings which would have indicated its size, location and configuration.

All together the lack of assistance and dangerous ramp led the senior to fall as he was trying to enter the bus. The fall caused him to strike his head hard on the ground, leading to a serious brain injury. As often happens in these serious senior falls, the man’s condition deteriorated quickly. He passed away five days after the fall.

Two of our attorneys, John J. Perconti and Scott J. Richard filed suit against the adult day care center for negligence and the corporations responsible for the maintenance of the curb. Last week an agreement was reached between the parties to settle the matter without the need to go to trial. The defendants agreed to pay $1.2 million for the incident. Half of the settlement is to be paid by the adult day care center and the other half will be paid by the companies owning and maintaining the premises.

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Victim Dies in Bus/Van Accident

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Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are one of the most common injures that can befall young children. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have found that children under four years old constitute the demographic group with one of the highest TBI incident rates. That is why our Illinois brain injury attorneys are working to raise awareness of these injuries. Even simple preventative steps can go a long way to saving many children from severe disability and even death.

A story in the North Fulton newspaper recently touch upon some basic safety tips for parents. To emphasize the importance of these safety efforts, the article shared the story of one nine-year old boy who forgot to heed his mother’s warning and rode off on his dirt bike without a helmet last September. While cycling through his subdivision to meet a friend, the boy accidently ran his bike into a chain link fence. The boy suffered a cut on the left side of his face, but even more serious, the child had suffered a brain injury. After being taken to a hospital, the boy was given stitches for the cut and then sent home.

However, the family soon realized the traumatic brain injury that he had suffered was far more serious than the cut. In the week after the injury, the boy began acting somewhat strange. His mother recalls that he was irritable and disgruntled—he was normally a happy, smiling child. On top of that, the boy had memory loss, became confused at times, and had trouble articulating his thoughts. The family eventually learned that all of these were symptoms of a serious concussion—rest and rehabilitation were required to give the brain time to heal and to keep the injury into developing into something serious.

The boy’s mother wanted to remind all local parents of the need to follow basic safety practices to cut down the risk of a child suffering a TBI. Some tips…

--Make sure children always ride in approved child safety seats when in the car. Auto accidents are one of the leading causes of TBI.

--However, never place a child who is in a carrier on a high place. Infants have suffered serious injuries after tumbling off a roof or other area while sitting in the car seat.

--Large pieces of furniture, televisions, and appliances should be secure. Toddlers who push or climb on them could be hurt if those objects tumble.

--Stairs should be free of clutter to prevent toddlers from tripping.

--Similarly, all windows should be locked to prevent falls by inquisitive youngsters.

If an injury does arise, it is important for parents to take the initiative to get help. The mother in this case reminds readers that “One thing that parents really need to know is that the child that has the concussion doesn’t realize that anything is wrong with them.” Our Chicago brain injury attorneys urge parents to remain vigilant for all signs of head injury. The potential consequences are far too serious to take any chances.

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The U.S. Congress is getting into the act to learn more about how traumatic brain injuries are affecting community members. C-Span provided a summary of recent efforts by the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Health to take at look at the issue and see if there was more that could be done to help those involved. In particular, the group of legislators is examining both public and private effort to prevent and treat the injuries and the subsequent disabilities. The hearing this afternoon comes amid growing national attention being devoted to these issues.

Considering the total number of community members affected by this injury, it is no surprise that there has been federal involvement in traumatic brain injuries for over fifteen years. The first federal initiatives to tackle the problem took the form of the Traumatic Brain Injury Act of 1996. Over the next decade and a half various amendments to the bill have also passed which promote education and treatment protocols. The legislation used various approaches to encourage more research into treatment and diagnosis options. In addition, the bill sought to improve the overall awareness effort. Awareness levels are now higher than they probably have ever been. However, that does not mean that there is not still room for improvement. Our Illinois brain injury lawyers know that for many, their first encounter with TBI is when someone they know suffers the head injury.

At the hearing—led by Pennsylvania Republican Congressman Joe Pitts—the committee heard testimony that reiterated the significant scope of the TBI problem. The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was rolled out which indicates that as many as 1.7 million American suffer a TBI each year. In total, falls are considered the leading cause, particularly for the most vulnerable in the community (those under 4 years old and over 75 years old). While falls cause more individual cases of TBI than any other single type of incident, automobile accidents usually cause the most serious TBIs. In particular, brain injuries that end up with a death are far more likely in car accidents than any other causes. Of course, the wide range of causes of TBIs mean that it is somewhat difficult for legislators to narrowly come up with some single solution which would tackle the prevention problem. As it now stands the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) spends about $400 million on various TBI programs. Those programs are geared both at prevention and treatment.

The hearing in large part was a discussion of the impact that the funding has had on both goals. The HHS Federal Traumatic Brain Injury Program is a comprehensive effort that helps both the victims of these injuries as well as their families. The comprehensive approach to support is important in these cases because, perhaps more so than with other types of injuries, TBIs truly affect entire families. When one’s personality, memories, and other cognitive functions are impaired, spouses, children, parents, siblings, and other have their lives turned upside down. Having various programs to support all those affected remains and important and worthwhile goal.

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Market Watch published this week on the details of a new traumatic brain injury study that is just getting underway at the University of Michigan. The effort targets injuries suffering by student athletes and is being funded by the NCAA. Our Illinois brain injury lawyers have previously shared information about the lawsuits that have been filed over the last pair of years against the collegiate athletic body. The NCAA suits are similar to those filed against the National Football League alleging that players suffered lifelong damage as a result of the league’s failure to warn of danger and take appropriate action to limit them.

Seemingly in an effort to expand knowledge on these issues that will one day help keep college players safe, the NCAA offered the researchers a grant in an effort to produce an “unprecedented” study on sports concussions. The effort will be a long-term one that will track involved participants over a prolonged period of time. Unlike short-term studies, these efforts usually track a growing group of athletes and for years in order to get legitimate data that shows the potential long-term effect of certain injuries. According to the report, the NCAA will provide $400,000 to start the effort which will be led by the National Sport Concussion Outcomes Study Consortium.

The Consortium hopes to include more than 1,000 athletes who participate in eleven different sports at three schools. The sports include football, soccer, basketball, hockey, lacrosse, water polo, and field hockey. A few non-contact athletes will also be measured including those participating in track, swimming, and diving. Those athletes will then be tracked throughout their lifetime to get an idea of how their lives might be affected by the head injuries. If all goes well, researchers are actually hoping to expand the effort down the road to begin tracing more athletes and at an earlier age (in high school). In that way, involved researchers hope to mimic a groundbreaking effort on the long-term effects of heart disease the revolutionized the way experts thought about cardiovascular risks—the “Framingham heart study.”

The members of the Consortium which will be leading this longitudinal study explain that there is not currently much hard data on the long-term effects of these injuries. A large reason for that is that it simply takes time for research efforts to produce clear results that track athletes over a long period of time. Right now researchers have many case reports, but little controlled studies that measure brain function over time while controlling for other variables.

Our Chicago brain injury lawyers appreciate that we hopefully sit at the precipice of a wave of new brain injury findings. In many ways nationwide attention on these issues has only occurred in the recent past. Many research efforts initiated in the wake of that attention have yet to yield results. It is only a matter of time before more of these studies bear fruit and yield important, new information about how to better prevent and treat these injuries. It is crucial for those in a position to take advantage of these new research findings to do just that.

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Nothing in the medical field remains as mysterious as the brain. It is only in the very recent past that medical researchers and scientists have begun to slowly figure out how some of the brain works. However, the brain injury attorneys at our firm appreciate that it would be a mistake to forget that there are still more unanswered questions than there are answered ones.

That point is exhibited clearly in the case of nine-year old Jason Egan. According to a story in the Huffington Post this week, medical experts and some of the world’s leading neurogeneticists still are not sure what brain injury or condition is affecting the young child. The boy seemed to have the brain injury at birth. At a young age he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy after exhibiting symptoms similar to those faced by cerebral palsy sufferers.

Our Illinois cerebral palsy lawyers have often shared that cerebral palsy (CP) can be caused by oxygen deprivation at birth. When problems develop during childbirth that limit the oxygen to neurons in the brain, permanent injuries can develop which cause a range of physical problems for the child. CP is an umbrella term that refers to a wide range of movement disorders often caused by that brain damage. Sufferers usually fall upon a spectrum, with various difficulties hearing, seeing, standing, walking, speaking, and controlling limbs. Experts explain that the condition can manifest itself as early as three month old, when children struggle to crawl. Usually after a year or two it becomes even clearer if a child is suffering from the condition.

In this case, the boy was unable to walk, talk, or feed himself. As a result he was initially diagnosed as suffering from cerebral palsy. However, as he aged his conditions seemed to get worse. This was a red flag for his doctors, because cerebral palsy is not progressive. Symptoms are not supposed to get worse over time. To figure out what was going on, his doctors gave the boy another brain scan. Amazingly, they found that, when compared to a scan given to the boy a few years earlier, his brain had shrunk considerably. There was simply no explanation for why this might have occurred.

In an attempt to figure out what might be causing the problem, the boy’s brain doctors tried essentially every diagnostic test in the book to conclusive rule out each possible cause. He did not have neuroaxonal dystrophy, the white matter in his brain was fine, and every other possible brain disease was tested for but not found.

So what caused the shrinking brain?

Doctors still have no idea. The best guess right now is the child may have some unique gene mutation that is little understood. T hat is why neurogeneticists are analyzing his DNA to see if a novel mutation can be identified. If identified, experts working on whatever gene happens to be mutating will take a look and see if anything can be learned from the situation.

In the short term, the family received good news recently when the latest brain scan revealed that the boy’s brain size had remained constant over the last year. That suggests that the condition might be abating. However, considering the case is rife with unknowns it is impossible to make any definitive conclusions.

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Cerebral Palsy Primer: What It Is & When It Arises

Birth Injury Lawsuit Filed After Child Born with Cerebral Palsy

Bloomberg News shared an interesting story this week on how technology is impacting the lives of those who have suffered brain injuries. It is sometimes forgotten that tech advances can lead to amazing new tools that allow those with certain severe disabilities to more fully engage in the world around them. Our Illinois brain injury attorneys appreciate the terrific advances that offer things for certain community members that would have seemed unattainable even a few years ago. Helping families have resources to access all of these tools and supplies is a goal of the work that we do via brain injury lawsuits in the civil justice system.

The Bloomberg story explains that the “assistive-technology” market is currently a $1 billion a year industry that continues to grow. There is no sign that it is slowing. When one considers the effects that these tech improvements have on the lives of so many community members there is no wonder why the industry has a bright future.

The article shares the story of one woman who has fine motor skill issues that force her hands into tightly clenched positions and limit her arm movements. As a result of a traumatic brain injury several years ago she is unable to walk, talk, or move her arms without restriction. Originally the woman had a communication device that weighed nine pounds and cost $15,000. The machine was supposed to track her eye movements on a special grid which corresponded with the alphabet. However, now a modified iPad has been able to open up a whole new world for her. Her mother noted with pride that when her daughter is using the iPad, “You see the joy on her face. It represents freedom to her.”

The assistive technology market is mostly focuses on the software side of the equation, creating programs that can be used on hardware machines like the iPad. A few companies dominate the market—DynaVox, Inc., Tobii Technology, and Prentke Romich. However, the advent of an “open” operating system is fostering a grassroots software industry to create programs to help those with certain mental or physical disabilities. Essentially anyone with the programming gumption can take a crack at creating tools which can help those in need.
Industry insiders say that those who have suffered stroke or a traumatic brain injury are leading the way in spurring innovation in the field. Instead of lugging around twenty pound devices to the playground, smaller tools may now be able to serve the same function in easier ways.

Communication is often at the heart of the benefit. According to the story, one sixteen year old girl sank into a major depression after suffering a traumatic brain injury in a car accident. Her parents explained that she finally improved when she was able to use an art application program on an iPad that improved her ability to communicate and express her creative side. The girl uses a special stylus that helps her do much more on her own than she ever could before.

Our Chicago brain injury attorneys are excited to see the ways how the steady path of technological improvements will continue to change lives down the road.

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Open access to the civil justice system makes everyone safer. Our Chicago brain injury lawyers firmly believe that the courts are one of the few places where everyone—no matter how rich or powerful—is on a level playing field. As such, it is in the courtroom where those who engage in unreasonable practices that hurt others can be held accountable for the consequences of their actions. Knowing that there may be consequences for harm caused to others incentivizes everyone, from individuals to businesses, to act appropriately to avoid the harm.

Unfortunately, some big interest groups have been waging war against this principle for years. Instead of investing in ways to act more appropriately (like, for example, improving hospital safety standards), these interests are seeking to avoid accountability altogether by taking away legal rights from those hurt by their misconduct. In many cases this might include Illinois brain injury victims whose injuries were caused by the negligence of others, including doctors in medical malpractice cases.

Over the last year we have been discussing the latest federal attempt at forcing these tort reforms measures on all state across the country. Packaged as House Resolution 5 (H.R. 5), the measure would impose a string of damage caps, limitations, and other changes on every state in Union—an egregious breach of the principle of federalism and a dangerous proposition for all those who care about fair access to the civil justice system.

The American Association for Justice is now reporting that, after stalling for a year, H.R. 5 appears to be on the fast-track. A vote on the floor of the House of Representatives is expected as early as next week. Those pushing the bill argue that it is necessary to save on healthcare spending. However, the Congressional Budget Office has projected that, at best, only one half of one percent of federal health spending will be affected by these tort reform measures. Even then, far more money can be saved by eliminating errors instead of eliminating legal rights. The Institute of Medicine has explained how as many as 98,000 people die every year as a result of preventable medical errors. The cost of those medical errors amounts to $300 billion annually. That figure dwarfs any savings from tort reform. The $300 billion does not even account for the hundreds of thousands of patients injured by errors who survive but still require extra care as a result of the mistakes.

Instead of meddling with the justice system, lawmakers should direct much more focus on actually make medical care better. This approach not only would save money, but it would save lives without decimating principles of fairness and justice.

Everyone is urged to take a moment to send a message to your member of Congress today to voice your opposition to the bill. Please follow this link to contact your representative and let them know that taking away basic legal rights is not in the best interest of our community or the country. Remember that the vote will happen in a just a few day, so there is no time to delay.

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Talk of military brain injuries made big headlines this week after a grisly event in Afghanistan. Community members were no doubt horrified to read about a soldier who apparently “snapped” and went on a shooting spree in a small Afghan village. At least sixteen civilians, including several children, were killed. Not long after the soldier surrendered many observers began asking what might have caused the outburst—a traumatic brain injury was one immediate offered explanation.

According to various reports, the 38-year old accused gunman had been treated for a brain injury during his deployment. He had suffered what was then deemed a mild traumatic brain injury in a car accident. However, he cleared the mental stability tests that he was later forced to take to become a sniper. As our Chicago brain injury attorneys have often reported, the testing for these sorts of injuries remains somewhat unreliable. The full extent of head injuries are difficult for medical providers to identify.

This latest tragedy will no doubt throw more fuel onto the fire of those who are calling for stepped up research and treatment for these injuries. Since the attack many national neurological experts have already sent notice to the Department of Defense that the agency needs to invest more resources into brain injury research. One leading brain doctor summarized the feelings of many by explaining “I think what happened right now in Afghanistan should wake up the military even further. The military should say we need to invest a lot of Department of Defense money into figuring out how we can identify these people…”

Along the same lines, as reported in the Fayetteville Observer, many are urging soldiers themselves to take close stock of own mental health. By their nature, many soldiers are prone to hide injuries in the hopes of staying in a fight or remaining with their unit. That is particularly true with brain injuries, because the harm is not visible—admitting injury may seem a sign of internal weakness. Yet, far from being true, stepped-up self-reporting of these injuries can go a long way to keep soldiers healthy.

The article shares the story of one Sergeant Major who admits that he hid the symptoms he was suffered from following a battlefield blast. He had short term memory loss, dizziness, and headaches, but he kept that to himself so that he could return to duty sooner. However, the Sergeant Major now speaks to groups of fellow soldiers about his injury in an effort to raise awareness of traumatic brain injuries and the need to take them seriously.

Major General Richard Stone—the Army’s deputy surgeon general—has also taken a lead in raising awareness of these injuries. He explains that head injuries have risen by 35% among soldiers over the last six years. That maybe a good thing, he notes, because it might represent greater awareness of these injuries and the need to report them. Hopefully those trends continue, so that soldiers who need help receive it, preventing the quite severe long-term harm that could be caused by untreated head injuries.

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Many brain injuries develop just before or just after a child is born. These birth injuries are frequently preventable and often traced by to inadequate care being provided by medical teams. When they are rooted in mistakes made by doctors and nurses during delivery, then medical malpractice lawsuits are often appropriate to hold the negligent party accountable for their actions and to ensure the brain-injured child has access to resources to receive support for their injury throughout their lives.

Those exact circumstances and goals are at the heart of a new brain injury lawsuit filed by a couple alleging mistakes were made during the birth of their son which led to his brain injuries. According to a story about the case in the Morning Sun, the mother first went to the medical facility after having a relatively healthy, normal pregnancy. She visited her medical provider on several occasions and no problems were found. After 38 weeks of pregnancy the mother and doctor decided to have the labor induced—this was not an abnormal time for induction.

The mother was a bit nervous about the procedure from the outset. In particular she was worried about the inducement drugs like Misoprostol and Oxytocin. The doctor told her not to worry about the drugs, and that everything would be fine—a prediction that would turn out to be grievously wrong.

A fetal heart rate monitor was used during the birth, but according to the medical malpractice lawsuit that was filed, that monitor was not properly analyzed. Apparently, the child’s hear rate actually dropped to a dangerously low rate over 40 minutes before its actual birth—a condition known as bradycardia. Low heart rate is incredibly dangerous for a fetus, because it may indicate lack of blood and oxygen reaching the brain. In this case, when the low heart rate was actually discovered the doctor first tried to conduct a vacuum extraction of the child. That did not work, and so a Cesarean section was eventually performed.

By the time the child left the womb, it was too late to avoid injury. He was forced to spend almost a month at the hospital. A year after his birth he was diagnosed with a form of cerebral palsy. Now two years old, it remains to be seen exactly what long-term consequences the child will face as a result of the birth injury. However, it is clear that damage is severe.

The Illinois brain injury lawyers at our firm have worked with many families who suffered harm in the same way as the couple in this case. When these sorts of injuries develop during the birthing process, in many cases it is the result of inadequate conduct on the part of those charged with medically steering the mother and child through the process. The costs of these injuries over the course of a lifetime are quite high. It is only appropriate for the institutions responsible for the injury in the first place to help handle some of those costs—that is one of the main outcomes of successful settlements or verdicts in these cases.

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More than one and a half million Americans will suffer a traumatic brain injury at some point this year. That means that it is likely that many readers will have a friend or family member has to deal with one of these injuries. For that reason, raising awareness of the prevention and treatment options for brain injuries is always an important goal. As part of the effort, many advocacy groups have declared March to be Brain Injury Awareness Month 2012. The drive is being recognized by those throughout North America and includes a wide range of activities and information-sharing events. Our Illinois traumatic brain injury attorneys recognize the important role that these advocacy efforts have in helping prevent future injuries and supporting those who are dealing with the consequences already.

A new story from Yahoo News discussed the efforts that some are making as part of the awareness month. For example, one brain injury survivor has created an online interactive space known as “My Positive Experience” where TBI victims and their loved ones can discuss their experiences. The author of the site who writes about his own experiences hopes to use the location to give a voice to those who are dealing with a TBI or are helping others deal with it.

In addition, My Positive Perspective includes a series of videos for all to view, including discussions with many experts on the topics of neurology. One helpful video from a board certified chiropractic neurologist is entitled “Six Important Factors for Brain Health.” By discussing basic information about the workings of the mind, the video shares information helpful all community members, even those who have not experienced a traumatic brain injury.

The Chicago brain injury attorneys at our firm fully support the efforts of all those working this month and throughout the year to draw attention to TBIs. For those who want to participate more, Wednesday, March 21st has been designated brain injury awareness day on Capitol Hill. Advocates from across the continent will descend on Washington D.C. to promote various legislative issues which have some impact on the lives of TBI victims and their loved ones. Brain injury awareness day will begin with a fair to share information about the injury. Later in the afternoon there will be a briefing on the impact of TBIs in a congressional meeting room in the Capitol Visitors Center. A reception will end the day where supports can mingle with many policymakers to discuss these issues. Brain injury awareness month and the Capitol Hill awareness day is spearheaded by the Congressional Brain Injury Task Force and supported by groups like the Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA).

Brain injuries can strike anyone at any time, because their causes are so varied. From car accidents to accidental falls, there always remains some risk of suffering head trauma which causes one of these injuries. However, basic reasonable steps can be taken to limit that risk. Driving carefully, wearing protective gear when playing sports, and other common sense steps can go a long way to preventing these injuries. We encourage all residents to take the time to educate themselves about TBIs and consider the ways that they can take small steps in their own lives to keep themselves safe.

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On Wednesday the Des Moines Register published a story explaining how certain brain injury advocates in Iowa are considering a lawsuit to force better treatment for those with head injuries. The potential civil rights lawsuit would be filed in federal court and demand improved care for certain residents who rely on the state for support. The paperwork necessary to initiate the lawsuit has apparently already been crafted. However advocates remain unsure if they will file the suit. Instead, the group is likely to file suit only if they cannot arrange for better treatment by working directly with state officials.

Our Illinois brain injury lawyers know that the claims of the suit would likely be based on an important U.S. Supreme Court ruling which found that Americans with disabilities have the right to live outside of the institutional setting if they are capable—this 1999 case is known as the Olmstead decision. A similar argument was made by Illinois residents with certain mental impairments in a recent high profile lawsuit. That Illinois case ended in a settlement whereby those individuals capable and interested in living more independently would be given basic resources and accommodations to do so.

Advocates in our neighboring state are calling for better options for those with brain injuries because, they argue, too many end up in nursing homes, jails, or psychiatric institutions. If these individuals were provided better services to help account for their vulnerabilities, then many would be able to live independently in better situations, such as in small group homes.

Officials in the state suggest that they are working to address the concerns without the need to head to court. Major mental health reform bills are being discussed. However, there is a big different between “discussing” bills to enact important changes for this community and actually taking action. In many ways the court is one area where advocates can force action when legislators engage in to too much talk and too little action.

The brain advocacy group considering the lawsuit notes that they have proposed many different ways that the state can raise the necessary funds to improve care for this community. For example, they note that many TBIs are caused by car accidents. Therefore changes in vehicle registration charges or licensure reinstatement fees for drunk drivers might be logical to pay for improved care for brain injury victims.

Each Chicago traumatic brain injury lawyer at our firm appreciates that this issue speaks to the related concern of ensuring that those experiencing these injuries have access to resources they need to live as productively as possible. In many cases the underlying brain injury might have been caused by the misconduct of another. If that is the case it is only fair—and in the best interest of society at large—to ensure that the wrongdoer is held accountable for the harm caused. Otherwise, the costs get shifted from the one who acted irresponsibly to all of us via taxpayer supported programs for these individuals. Many brain injuries are not caused by third parties, and so these programs are important to support victims in those situations. However, that does not mean that the public should pick up the slack for all consequences of negligent community members who hurt others.

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One fact that Illinois brain injury victims and their families know well: medical bills are often staggeringly expensive. Those suffering from the more severe traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)—often from falls, car accidents, and similar situations—have particularly high medical bills because of the intensive intervention necessary to keep them healthy. In the case of TBI victims, the basic medical costs are compounded by the often extensive therapy necessary to recover brain function and relearn basic skills. These costs may last for years. In fact, many families are simply unable to secure the best therapy available to help spur recovery as much as possible as a result of a lack of financial resources.

The latest estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) place the direct medical costs of TBIs at $60 billion annually. However, when all of the incidental costs are included, such as lost ability to work and other lifestyle changes, the overall costs has been estimated into the trillions of dollars each year. The money involved in these situations is truly mind-boggling. Even when brought down to the level of a single family, the financial consequences of these injuries alone often place impossible financial strain on those hurt.

For this reason, our Illinois brain injury lawyers were not surprised to read the story this week from the USA Today which found that as many as one in five Americans are struggling with medical debt. The finding was taken from a CDC survey of 52,000 people last year. According to those involved, this is the first government examination of the actual scope of medical debt. In fact, even independent health policy observers have conceded that this CDC study is likely the largest-ever examination of medical debt.

The findings are not pretty. Twenty percent of Americans are struggling to pay this debt, with half of that group admitting that they are currently unable to pay any money at all toward the financial burden. Expectedly, those with lower income are hardest hit by high medical bills. As defined in the survey, low-income Americans were 300% more likely to be struggling with this debt when compared to their middle and upper income counterparts.

Our Illinois injury lawyers appreciate that financial struggles have a tremendous impact on all areas of one’s life. Basic decisions about where to live, what to drive, what to eat, and what to do with one’s free time are all dictated by one’s financial situation. Therefore, when even a single medical catastrophe leads one to accumulate large medical bills, the life of an entire family can be turned upside down for decades.

If you find yourself in this situation and the underlying cause of the medical harm was connected to the actions of someone else, you should remember that you may have legal recourse. No family should be thrown into financial ruin because of the misconduct of another person. Please take a moment to share your story with a legal professional to learn how the law might apply in your case to help with mounting medical bills.

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Child brain injuries are particularly tragic,because they often mean that a youngster will have to live the rest of their life with certain disabilities that they otherwise would have avoided. These traumatic brain injuries can arise in any setting where proper care and caution is not provided. When caused by the mistakes or abuse of a third party, it is often important for involved families to seek out legal options to ensure their injured child will have access to the resources they need to heal and recover from the injury as much as possible.

For example, The Republic reported on a legal settlement stemming from an incident where a toddler suffered a serious brain injury while in foster care. The brain injury lawyer who brought the suit argued that the child suffered brain damage and severe head injuries while in the foster care system. The injuries were caused, it is alleged, by abusive foster parents. The suit suggests that a state Department of Human Services employee and her supervisor should have known that the abuse was taking place and should have acted to prevent it. Their failure to do so allowed the mistreatment to continue, ultimately resulting in the severe injuries to the child.

The case was brought in federal court against the foster parents individually and the state via the conduct of the two employees at the humans services department. The suit against the foster parents who actually abused the child is ongoing. However, the state recently agreed to settle the lawsuit for $275,000; most of the money will be invested for the child to have access a eighteen years old.

Of course the legal theories underlying the claims against the foster parents and state are much different. The case against the parents suggests outright intentional abuse which caused the injury. Conversely, the claims against the state allege negligence on the part of the employees who had a duty to check up on the child and failed to act appropriately which contributed to the harm.

According to reports, the authorities were called to the foster parents’ house two years ago when the boy was found unresponsive in the home. He had intensive head injuries, and the foster parents claimed that he had fallen out of bunk bed. The boy, the two year old, was in critical condition, and it was initially unclear is he would survive. Fortunately, he pulled through, but not after being diagnosed with head trauma and an ulcerated liver. He required extensive hospitalization and rehabilitation. Later, state investigators blamed the injuries on the “abuse or neglect” of the foster parents, though there was no further elaboration on what that meant. It later came out that the state workers had actually noticed back bruises on the child a few months earlier. That care workers suspected abuse and reported to supervisors at the department of human services (who were defendants in the lawsuits). Those supervisors failed to do anything to check up on the claim. No investigation or even a house visit was conducted. The bruising actually became worse the following weeks, but nothing was done to keep the child (or his siblings in the same home) safe.

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How serious is even a single concussion? For a long time all concussions were assumed to be just minor injuries that might rattle the victim but without serious long-term harm. However, our Illinois brain injury lawyers, along with the rest of the public, have been following along closely as more and more medical research pours out that emphasizes the seriousness of even a single concussion.

For example, this week a story in Fox News discussed the serious nature of all brain injuries, including concussions. It was noted that the effects of a single concussion may linger for child victims up to a year after the trauma which caused the injury. This is a far cry from the “shake it off” approach that dominated community thought on these injuries for so long.

According to this latest story, when taking into account just child and adolescents, there are more than half a million severe to mild brain injuries annually. All of these victims face some symptoms, even if they may seem to have recovered without issue. Those problems can range from severe disabilities to mild problems with forgetfulness and attention issues. Even those mild symptoms can last for up to a year. To our brain injury lawyers, this is even more proof that all those in a position to prevent child concussions must step up their efforts to ensure the youngsters remain safe.

These latest findings on the length of time that symptoms persist in child victims were released by experts at Ohio State University and the Nationwide Children’s Hospital. The research involved 186 children and teens of various ages who have suffered mild traumatic brain injuries. These children were more likely than their counterparts to have headaches, memory issues, inattentiveness and other issues up to a year after the injury. Summing up the participant pool, one medical expert involved in the effort explained, ‘the majority of kids in the study were injured in sports or recreational activities. A small number were injured in motor vehicle accidents, but most were sports-related or falls.”

Researchers suspect that the injuries are affecting the children’s lives in ways that may have previously not been attributed to the head trauma. Problems in school, for example, may in part be connected to attention and memory issues caused by a concussion. The take-away message is clear: concussions are real traumatic brain injuries that have to be taken seriously at all times.

The research also may have legal implications. Those charged with keeping our children safe have an obligation to act reasonably to prevent harm. The amount of safety precautions needed to be taken to prevent harm depends in large part of the risk of harm and its severity. An old legal adage often is reduced to the equation B = LP. B refers to the burden (to ensure safety), L is the loss (degree of harm) and P is the probability of the harm occurring. In other words, as the potential harm increases—or awareness of that harm increases—then the burden on the individual ensure reasonable safety also increases. Failure to meet that burden could result in legal liability for the harm causes to child victims.

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The Bradenton Herald had yet another story this week that explores the surge in publicity around traumatic brain injuries. Interestingly, while noting the rising attention to the problem, the editorial also argues that there still remains a huge disconnect between the actual scope of the problem at the seriousness with which community members are taking it. Each Chicago brain injury lawyer at our firm spends significant time understanding these injuries and their consequences. The argument for lack of awareness, according to the California Independent Living Council which wrote the editorial, essentially breaks down into a lack of public appreciation of three things: the (1) frequency of the injuries; (2) their severity; and (3) the cost.

Frequency
According to the Brain Injury Association, every year more than 1.7 million Americans suffer a traumatic brain injury. That breaks down to one of these injuries occurring every 21 seconds. Perhaps just as significantly, a large number of the victims of these injuries are children and adolescents. More than 500,000 youngsters under the age of fifteen suffer a traumatic brain injury each year. These are far from trivial numbers and suggest a problem with a considerable breadth.

Severity
In the past many of these injuries were assumed to be relatively mild, with few to no symptoms and little risk of long-term harm. Medical researchers are continuing to learn that the consequences of even a single seemingly mild traumatic brain injury can be significant. Of course, this doesn’t even account for the more serious TBIs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explain the “public health burden of traumatic brain injuries in the United States annually represents 52,000 deaths, 275,000 hospitalizations, and 1,365,000 emergency room visits. Those figures don’t’ even account for the 20% of returning U.S. service members who suffer some form of TBI.

Cost
Our Illinois brain injury attorneys appreciate that essentially as a result of the amount of injuries and their severity, the annual cost on the public is tremendous. When accounting for both direct and indirect costs, the CDC estimates that these brain injuries cost about $76.3 billion annually. This figure was reached using comprehensive assessments of all the costs that befall these victims. For example, acute care in hospitals can cost as much as $8,000 per day. Post-acute care can cost anywhere from $850 to $2,500 daily. Beyond that even day treatment programs (without room and board) average $600 to $1,000 for a four hour session.

As one brain advocacy group council member summarizes, “The cost for institutional-based health care services is extraordinarily expensive, but more importantly, people with brain injuries want and have the right to live independently in their communities.”

These high costs are what occasionally results in seemingly high jury verdicts following a brain injury lawsuit. When the injury is caused by the misconduct of another, it is only reasonable for that negligent party to pay for the care needed so that the one hurt can get their lives back to normal as much as possible. In many cases, the individual with the TBI can never fully recover, but at the very least, they deserve the chance to live as fully as possible—particularly when their injury was entirely the fault of another.

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Time is of the essence when it comes to preventing severe brain injuries following oxygen deprivation. Each Illinois brain injury attorney at our firm appreciates that these injuries can accrue in any situation where oxygen is deprived to the brain because the individual is not breathing. One of the more common situations where oxygen deprivation arises is following traumatic births of infants. When complications develop during a labor, a new child may experience a prolonged period of time where oxygen does not go into the brain.

A new, but increasingly popular, way of helping these young brain injury victims is via use of induced hypothermia or cooling of the body. This treatment method is very important, because medical professionals explain that there are many challenges to reversing brain damage after it occurs. Therefore, all steps which can ensure that the damage doesn’t occur at all it is perhaps the best way to limit the total number of individuals living with debilitating brain injuries.

As discussed in The Gazette, the cooling process works best for infants when begun within six hours of the child’s birth. Though a few different methods exist—and more are being created—it usually works by stripping the child of clothing and have them lay on a mattress filled with ice water. In other formats a chilled hat or jacket may also be used. Our Illinois brain injury lawyers know this treatment has been growing steadily in popularity over the last few years. Now virtually all major hospital centers either have a hypothermia program in place or have arrangements to transfer a child to nearby facilities that do have the treatment.

Experts explain that asphyxia—the oxygen deprivation which calls for the hypothermia treatment—occurs in about one out of every thousand full term births. The rate is higher for premature births. The causes are varied, including heart development problems, ruptured placentas, umbilical cord wrapping, and similar birth complications. Some of these complications are preventable, other are not.

Doctors know that brain damage occurs in waves. In the first wave there is the initial “starvation” of oxygen to the brain. Then, when oxygen and blood supply returns there is a second wave of damage caused by the creation of harmful toxins which are produced and against which the brain cannot protect itself. Cooling works by slowing the body down and biding time so that the brain can better cope with the “toxins” that arise when the blood and oxygen flow is returned to the brain. The chilled body has a lower metabolism and less need for energy.

Several major studies are still underway to help doctors pinpoint exactly how well the cooling works and the process by which it works. Specifically, researchers are hoping to understand why some children benefit from the process better than others. Right now about 40% of the children who receive the treatment fully recover. Researchers want to know if variations of the treatment—colder, deeper, longer—might play a role in helping those children who currently do not benefit from the treatment.

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The Brain Tsunami

Child brain injuries are most likely to occur in two main situations: after traumatic births or in automobile accidents. Though less common, drownings remain another way that some area children suffer permanent, and even fatal, brain injuries. While the Chicago winter is not yet over, and the summer swimming season still month away, our Illinois brain injury attorneys believe that it is never a bad time to remind local families about the dangers of having any sort of water around unsupervised children.

Swimming pools, ponds, rivers, and lakes are obviously the most likely locations for child drowning accidents to occur. But there are others. For example, the Indy Star reported last week on the tragic drowning of a one-year old child in a baptismal font. The one year old boy, Juan Cardenas, was supposed to be under the care of day-care workers at the Praise Fellowship Assembly of God church. However, according to the information that is currently available, it does not seem that those care workers were providing a close eye on the child.

At one point during the day a therapist had arrived at the facility to begin a session with Juan. It was at that point that day-care workers first noticed that he was missing. A search ensued, and the child was eventually found in the baptismal font. The font was a body of water that was only two-feet deep. However, that was enough to cause immense damage for the one-year old boy. When he was found he was rushed to a local hospital where doctors did all that they could to try to save him. Unfortunately, he ultimately passed away as a result of a severe brain injury. As is the case in drownings, the brain injury was caused by a lack of oxygen to the brain as a result of being underwater for a prolonged period of time.

It is an unspeakable loss for the family and community. Making the situation even more heartbreaking is the fact that the accident could undoubtedly have been prevented had those charged with caring for the boy acted appropriately.

In fact, those looking into the situation have already uncovered some troubling evidence about the day care center’s history of providing proper care to the 30 to 35 children that they watch each day. Only three months ago the facility was cited by inspectors for caregiving lapses. Food at the facility was expired, high-chairs were found without proper safety restraints, and similar problems were identified. Of course, this indicates that there may not have been an adequate level of focus on child safety at this church.

Our child drowning lawyers know that these church day care centers are not required to abide by the same level of safety regulations as regular licensed facilities. However, that does not mean that they owe no duty to those in their care. The common law still requires that these facilities act appropriately in the care they provide to children and their families. When they fail to meet those reasonable standards, they can and should be held accountable for their negligence. It is only in this way that changes can be demanded which will ensure future children are spared.

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St. Louis Today published a helpful story this week that emphasizes the challenges still faced by medical providers trying to develop foolproof ways to find the actual damage caused by traumatic brain injuries. As each Illinois brain injury lawyer at our firm has repeatedly explained, before treatment can be provided to help those injured, we must first be able to identify that there is an injury and the specifics of how the brain is harmed. Getting over that first hurdle continues to prove challenging in many ways.

The story notes that in all contexts—from battlefield wounds to football collisions—there is no clear way to diagnose a TBI. However, one new approach that is getting some attention involves use of a tool that scans the brain and essentially “lights up” the portions of it which have been damaged. Those promoting the efforts compare it to how an x-ray shows a broken bone. If consistently reliable, this sort of test may prove invaluable down the road. The scan is a new MRI-based test that is just now being properly evaluated to test its effectiveness. The research is still brand new and so it is not possible to make clear pronouncements about whether or not this method will prove effective.

The lead developer of the new scanning method summarizes by noting, “We now have, for the first time, the ability to make visible these previously invisible wounds. If you cannot see or quantify the damage, it is hard to treat it.”

Working with many clients who have suffered traumatic brain injuries, our brain injury attorneys appreciate the immense frustration that comes with having an often-debilitating injury that seems invisible. The frustration is shared by those hurt, their families, and even doctors provided them care. Some TBIs—such as those experienced in auto accidents or following serious falls—lead to extreme disability. However, others that are less serious have symptoms that are very difficult to pinpoint, like memory loss, mood changes, and other subtle problems.

In addition, sometimes a certain brain injury will not lead to any visible signs but will still increase the likelihood of severe damage or other neurological problems down the road. These often prove the most risky, because the initial injuries often go untreated for lack of symptoms. This is the issue facing those in certain sports, like football, who may suffer repeat concussions over a period of years.

Experts hope this new scan might change that by allowing professionals to determine clearly and more conclusively whether damage has accrued. Right now, standard scans only see bleeding and swelling—not broken or damage nerves and cells seen in brain injuries. The new scan, known as a “high-definition fiber tracking,” includes a special computer program that maps fiber tracts and colors them, allowing breaks within those tracks to be readily seen. These “breaks” may stop the nerve connections from doing what they are suppose to—which leads to brain injury symptoms. A previous computer program tried to do the same thing, but it did not provide clear enough results to be helpful. On the contrary this new scanning version may prove much more helpful. One research explained that “it’s like comparing your fuzzy screen black and white TV with a high-definition TV.”

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This week the New York Times—along with many other news outlets—spread word of the latest research into traumatic brain injuries that offers glimpses of hope for tens of thousands battling the condition. In particular, the research findings target those who have often been nearly written off, including those with the most severe brain injuries. According to the story, the particular study which reached these findings constitutes perhaps the most scientifically strong effort so far involving a therapy that helps these individuals.

The study will appear in the New England Journal of Medicine and for the first time may provide medical professionals with a standard treatment for these severe injuries. The study targets patients who are in only partial states of consciousness or a completely unresponsive “vegetative” state. All together estimates suggest that this includes anywhere from 65,000 to 115,000 Americans. However, even beyond this group, most suspect that these treatments will also help those with less severe traumatic brain injuries.

The results are modest, but considering the complete lack of standard treatment protocols for these conditions in the past, it represents an important step forward. Summarizing the progress, a leading clinical researcher explained, “This study puts the traumatic brain injury field on the first step of the ladder to developing scientific treatments. We’ve been trying to get there for a long-time.”

So what is the treatment?

The drug which has been found to help these victims has been around for a long time to treat Parkinson’s disease—amantadine hydrochloride. Speculation about the drug’s effectiveness in the brain injury context has been around for awhile, but there was never much proof for it. However this latest research puts those uncertainties to rest. That is because this is the first effort which uses actual large, double-blind, placebo controlled experiments.

Participants included those with varying degrees of brain injury (though all classified as “severe”). Those involved were split into two groups, both with equivalent levels of overall injury. One group was given a placebo and the other received the amantadine, twice a day. The patients’ progress was analyzed using a range of measures including communication and coordinationability. Because this was a double-blind experiment, the therapists and caregivers who did the measuring and reporting of scores did not know which patients were actually receiving the drug and which the placebo.

Overall, researchers found that those receiving amantadine showed more improvement that those not on the drug. To be clear, the improvement was modest. However, the improvement was seen in just a month’s time which is relatively quick for these sorts of injuries. In the two weeks after the study, when the patients stopped receiving the drug, the placebo group caught up in terms of improvement. This means that while the drug seems to speed up improvement, it is unclear if it improves the total recovery level itself.

Our Chicago brain injury attorneys applaud all of the researchers working in this field. We understand the consequences that these injuries have on the lives of thousands of residents in our area and throughout the country. All efforts which may improve the lives of these individuals should be promoted and supported.

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Science Daily published a fascinating new story last week on research which is adding knowledge to our understanding of memory formation. Each Chicago brain injury attorney at our firm appreciates that the loss of old memories or ability to form new memories is one damaging effect of serious traumatic brain injuries as well as degenerative brain injuries (strokes, dementia, Alzheimer’s). The complexity of the memory process has made it difficult for those treating these injuries to come up with proper treatment methods that may actually improve the quality of life of sufferers. However, with newer understandings of how the memory process actually works, it is hoped that treatment can eventually be created to reverse the damage.

This latest effort was spearheaded by researchers at the Center for Neural Circuit Genetics. Those involved say that they now believe they understand how individual brain cells can both create new memories while retaining old ones. The results will be published in the late March edition of the journal, Cell. In short, the researchers believe that the memory issues involve a connection between the cellular basis of memory formation and the birth of new brain cells. More specifically, researchers believe that a region of the brain called the “dentate gyrus” plays a crucial role in memory formation.

The researchers further believe that an imbalance between young and old brain cells—neurons—might disrupt the memory formation process. This would have visible effects for the sufferer in the form of lost old memories or inability to form new memories. Experts say this may be common among those who have suffered post traumatic stress disorder or in certain degenerative states that commonly affect the elderly, like dementia and Alzheimer’s.

The particularly study which led to these findings included examination of two types of memory. “Patter separation” are memories that distinguish between two different but similar events—like the different tastes of two ice creams that look similar. “Patter completion” involves the ability to recall memories based on clues—like remembering where you were when trying to two different ice cream flavors.

Our Illinois traumatic brain injury attorneys are thrilled at the prospects that this and similar research efforts create. Working on the legal side of things, we deal daily with residents whose lives are turned upside down by these injuries, which were caused through the negligence or recklessness of others. The situations are made particular tragic in many cases because of the lack of proper treatments to help ease some of the consequences of the injury.

The mysteries of the brain have eluded professionals for quite some time. However, there has been a surge in new information about the workings of the brain and the ways that it can be damaged. It is only a matter of time before this information spawns actual interventions that can actually improve the lives of the brain injury victims that we work with. In the case of memory formation issues, like that discussed here, the research may eventually led to a new class of drugs being created which might be able to target memory disorders.

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One of the most common—and potentially harmful—forms of medical malpractice is the failure to timely diagnose a medical condition or a delay in diagnosing the condition. In many medical situations, time is of the essence. If a medical professional medical provider does not act reasonably when a patient comes in, and a condition is not identified that should have been identified, then medical malpractice may have occurred.

This type of mistake perhaps receives the most publicity in cancer cases. Of course, catching cancer early is crucial, because the more time that cancer has to spread the harder it is for caregivers to control it and save the patient’s life. However, failure to diagnose lawsuits can also be filed in many other contexts—including when traumatic brain injuries are involved.

In fact, a failure to diagnose a TBI was at the heart of a medical malpractice lawsuit (and settlement) that was profiled this weekend in the Contra Costa Times. The suit was filed a year and a half ago by a man who was staying at a public rehabilitation center. While there took a pretty tough fall in the bathroom, hitting the bathroom floor hard. Caregivers at the facility claim that they conducted an evaluation after the fall and determined that he did not show any sign of injury. That is why they apparently discharged the man. However, after arriving home, it became clear that something was wrong. Eventually his family was forced to rush him back to the hospital where he was finally diagnosed with having suffered a traumatic brain injury. He had bleeding on the brain that required extensive medical care to correct.

Following the accident, the man filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against the rehabilitation facility claiming that they did not conduct a thorough examination to ensure that he was safe to be discharged. Part of the complaint included allegations that the staff members at the facility were negligent in their examination due to the fact that the accident occurred near the holidays and they wanted to leave.

According to the story it now appears that the city, which is responsible for the conduct of the public rehabilitation facility, is seeking to settle the lawsuit. The Board of Supervisors will vote on the reported settlement this week. As it is currently proposed, the settlement would include $2.3 million to the patient, an assumption of a Medi-Cal lien of roughly $200,000, and excusing the man’s $635,000 hospital bill.

It is encouraging that the negligent facility in this case appears poised to step up and accept responsibility for their conduct in this case. Beyond providing redress for the man in this case, the suit has also spurred changes at the facility. Part of the settlement includes demands that the country health officials provide a corrective plan of action. The plan will survey how the hospital conducts patient assessments to prevent injured patients from being sent home improperly. Hopefully these protocol changes will spare future victims the same suffering that the man in this case experienced.

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