TBI Symptoms and Diagnosis

A Traumatic Brain Injury can cause permanent changes to the brain. Unfortunately, the diagnosis and treatment of a TBI can be completely missed by in car accident and slip and fall cases. It is important to monitor your condition immediately following an accident and get properly diagnosed for a TBI. It helps to know the signs of a brain injury.

If you have been involved in a motor vehicle accident or a slip and fall and have any of the following symptoms of a traumatic brain injury you should be immediately evaluated by a neurologist for a TBI or concussion:

• Loss of consciousness
• Headache
• Dizziness at scene
• Difficulty speaking
• Amnesia
• Memory Loss
• Personality changes
• Hearing loss
• Vision loss
• Fatigue
• Aggression
• Balance problems

It is important to note that you should seek a neurologist that has experience with diagnosing and treating TBI in accident cases. In Delaware a doctor must write a report and relate your injury to the accident in order for you to receive just compensation for your injury. You can reach my office at (302) 482-4802 and we an go over the legal ramifications of your medical treatment and provide you with a list of providers who treat TBI.

How to Prove a TBI Case With Diagnostic Testing

One of the most important aspects of a brain injury legal case is obtaining medical evidence to objectively prove the injury. You will be the Plaintiff in a brain injury case and it is the Plaintiff’s burden to prove the injury. 90% of traumatic brain injuries are categorized as mild. The defense attorney may attempt to dismiss your injury as “mild.” Mild-brain injuries can have a lifelong impact on your mental and physical function. It is important to come to court or mediation with the proper objective evidence and diagnostic tests to prove your case and show that this injury is real and devastating to your daily life. The following is a list of testing that can be done by doctors in brain injury cases:

MRI with Diffuse Tensor Imaging (DTI). An MRI on the brain uses a magnet and radio waves to detect the structure of brain tissues. When DTI software is added to the MRI it tracks white matter brain signal pathways to help doctors figure out where brain signals drop out. White matter refers to the nerves that conduct brain signals throughout the brain. DTI tracks the direction of water in the brain and the rate at which waster is moving throughout the brain. Color coded images are produced which show how white matter pathways in the brain work and will show any abnormality or disruption of these pathways. This test is the gold standard for traumatic brain injury cases.

Cat Scan. A CT scan of the brain involve x-ray images of the brain with the aid of computer tomography to create images. CT scans are good at identifying swelling, bleeding and the shifting of the brain’s structures. However, the resolution on a CT scan is poor compared to an MRI. You can still have a brain injury and have a negative CT. An MRI is the gold standard for imaging brain injuries.

QEEG. EEG (electroencephalography) tests electric activity in the brain.The test is performed by putting electrodes on the scalp that measure the electrical activity of the brain. QEEG stands for quantitative electroencephalography which uses mathematics to compare your brain signals against the population to give your doctor and attorney statistics on how well your brain is functioning. QEEG can tell your doctor or lawyer if the electric activity in the brain deviates from normative values.

VNG. VNG stands for videonystagmography. VNG measures involuntary eye movements called nystagmus. Nystagmus is an involuntary jerking of the eye. Eye issues can cause headaches and balance problems after a TBI. Vision loss is common after head trauma but its diagnosis is often delayed.

EMG EMG is a diagnostic procedure to assess the health of muscles and the nerve-cells that conduct them. EMG can reveal nerve dysfunction, muscle dysfunction or problems with the nerve to muscle signal transmission in peripheral nerves. Peripheral nerves are the nerves outside of the brain and spine. If you have any symptoms of weakness, atrophy, radiating pain, burning or tingling to your limbs you may want to ask your doctor to order an EMG.

NCV. NCV is a nerve conduction velocity test. It tests the speed at which the nerve signals travel on the pathways of the peripheral nerves. This test is complimentary to the EMG and performed at the same time.

Biodex Balance Test. A test that determines how you balance on stable and unstable surfaces. Your results can be measured against individuals of the same age and sex. Results are demonstrated using percentile rankings which can be helpful to your brain injury case.

Physical Performance Balance Testing. These tests measure your balance and stability. The tests are scored based upon how long you can balance and will give you a classification for risk of future injury. The practitioner will classify you as normal, moderate, or high risk for future falls or injury. This test is usually conducted by a physical or occupational therapist.

Hearing Test. A hearing test is performed by an audiologist and can detect if you have hearing loss. If you have been involved in an accident that caused a TBI, 60% of the TBI population can have hearing loss. Individuals with TBI should consult with an ENT and get a referral to an audiologist if you believe you have any hearing loss.

Cognition and Pscyhometric Testing. A neuropsychologist can conduct neuropsychological testing to determine if any cognitive impairments or deficits exist including any emotional deficits such as increased depression due to the brain injury.

Contact a Wilmington, Delaware Brain Injury Lawyer

The above objective diagnostic tests are extremely important to documenting your claim for money damages. It is important to have an attorney and doctor that are familiar with the medical literature regarding these injuries. Contact Jason R. Antoine Delaware traumatic brain injury attorney to discuss your case at a free consultation.

Click Here to Learn About the Different Types of Traumatic Brain Injuries