If you’re involved in a Texas motor vehicle collision, the days and weeks that follow the incident will shed more light on your condition. It is important to seek medical assistance immediately following such incidents and to return to a hospital or physician’s office if new symptoms develop later. Certain warning signs may appear after a car accident that suggest you have suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI).
While such symptoms may also be present with other injuries not associated with the brain, it’s always best to receive a medical examination to rule out TBI if these symptoms occur. Even a mild TBI can take a sudden turn for the worse, perhaps placing you in a life-threatening condition. The sooner you receive a diagnosis and proper treatment, the fuller recovery you may be able to achieve.
Never disregard these warning signs, which suggest TBI
Experiencing any of the symptoms shown in the following list after having been involved in a Texas car accident means that you may have suffered a TBI:
- Sensitivity to light or sound
- Loss of taste or smell senses
- Ringing in the ears or bruising behind the ears
- Clear or blood-tinged fluid leaking from nose or ears
- Difficulty rousing from sleep
- Erratic mood swings
- Nausea or vomiting
- Seizures or fainting spells
If your condition does not begin to improve in the days following a car accident or any of the symptoms on this list develop, it is best to seek immediate medical care, making sure to mention to the attending physician that you were recently involved in a motor vehicle collision.
Doctors know what tests to perform to rule out or diagnose TBI
If you seek medical care for a possible TBI following a car accident, the doctor overseeing your case will use special tools to look into the pupils of your eyes. He or she may also ask you questions or instruct you to recite the alphabet or count backwards from 10 to zero. Inability to perform these tasks would suggest that you have suffered a concussion.
The doctor may also order a CT scan or MRI to further investigate your symptoms if he or she suspects a more severe brain injury. Such tests help to rule out or diagnose TBI. If the doctor makes a diagnosis, your medical team, including a neurosurgeon, will discuss a prognosis and recommended treatment plan.
When driver negligence was the cause of your TBI
Every year, more than 100,000 individuals in Texas suffer brain injuries, many of which occur following a car accident. Thousands, if not tens of thousands of these incidents, may have been preventable were it not for driver negligence. When evidence shows that a person’s negligence or reckless behavior was a direct cause of a TBI or other damages in a motor vehicle collision, state law allows a recovering victim or immediate family member of a deceased victim to seek restitution in civil court.