Traumatic brain injuries are a major concern in the United States, causing numerous deaths and disabilities each year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) contribute to 30 percent of all injury-related deaths. Each day in the United States, 138 individuals die from injuries that include TBI. In 2010, TBI contributed, overall, to the deaths of 50,000 individuals.
Living with TBI can include living with disabilities that can last a lifetime. In 2010, 2.5 million emergency room visits, hospitalizations and deaths were associated with TBI. TBIs can result in impaired thinking, memory, sensation, movement or emotional functioning. Due to the broad and significant nature of the different types of harm associated with TBI, it can impact both victims and their families.
Traumatic brain injuries result from some type of trauma, which can be closed or open, to the head that disrupts the normal function of the brain. Overall, TBIs have been described by the CDC as a serious public health concern. Car accidents were the third overall leading cause of TBIs among all age groups from the years 2006 to 2010. Victims of TBIs and their families can experience ongoing harm, as well as physical, financial and emotional damages that can extend well into the future.
Because of the significant impact and unexpected nature of a TBI, victims and their families may have different options available to help them. Victims may be able to recover compensation for the physical, financial and emotional harm that they have suffered, which is why it can be important to be familiar with legal options that may be available to allow them to more fully focus on their recovery.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Traumatic Brain Injury in the United States: Fact Sheet,” accessed May 19, 2015