Is a Brain Injury Considered a Catastrophic Injury?

While the heart is referred to as the center of our emotions, we know that the brain is what controls everything in our bodies. Our thoughts, emotions, and conscious actions all come from our brains. So, an injury to the brain is an extremely scary proposition. Brain injuries are not fully understood and are often impossible to repair through surgery. They can worsen unexpectedly, as injury attorneys know all too well. An injury to your brain can affect your ability to do things and even change who you are.

So, is this type of injury considered catastrophic? The answer is not as simple as “yes” or “no.” It depends on a number of different factors. In this post, we explore when a brain injury is considered a catastrophic injury and when it may not be.

Understanding Catastrophic Injuries

The term “catastrophic injury” is so common that it may come as a surprise to learn that it does not have a standard accepted definition. Different medical organizations have their own definitions, so it’s necessary to look at a wide range of medical evidence to get an idea of what the generally accepted concept of catastrophic injuries includes.

A catastrophe is generally defined as an event that causes great damage or suffering. If that definition is applied to a medical injury, then a catastrophic injury could include any serious injury. However, it usually takes more than that for an injury to be classified as catastrophic. It usually needs to be an injury that results in death or long-term disability or disfigurement.

Someone suffering from a catastrophic injury may never recover and will generally require extensive medical care and rehabilitation that could last indefinitely. In addition to medical care, those with catastrophic injuries also often need assistance to accomplish daily tasks that the rest of us take for granted.

While many injuries to the brain rise to this level of severity, not all of them do. So, the next step is to look at the types and severity of brain injuries.

Acquired Brain Injuries vs. Congenital Brain Injuries

At the most basic level, brain injuries can be divided into two categories—acquired brain injuries and congenital brain injuries. Acquired brain injuries are damage to the brain that occurs after birth and congenital brain injuries are those that occur before or during birth. While some congenital brain injuries can develop during pregnancy due to unknown natural causes, others can be traced to negligence or wrongful conduct that causes trauma before or during the birth process. Often, the brain is damaged due to lack of oxygen. Cerebral palsy is one example of this type of brain injury.

Acquired brain injuries are divided into two further types: traumatic and non-traumatic. A traumatic injury is one caused by a sudden external trauma, such as falling and striking your head on the wall or floor. An incident such as a car or truck accident often causes both primary and secondary traumatic brain injuries—the primary injury occurs on the initial impact, and the secondary injury happens when bleeding or other effects cause additional damage to brain tissue. Non-traumatic brain injuries are caused by internal forces such as a stroke.

All these types of brain injuries can become catastrophic if they have a severe effect on the victim’s life. In many cases, these injuries could have been prevented if someone had behaved responsibly, and when that’s the case, the victim or their family can be entitled to compensation through a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit.

Degrees of Severity of Brain Injuries

Although classification can vary, many medical professionals use three degrees of severity to describe brain injuries. Doctors will describe a brain injury as mild, moderate, or severe, although it is important to realize that an injury that appears mild can worsen substantially if there is bleeding in the brain. Signs of moderate and severe brain injuries are usually apparent on neuroimaging tests, while signs of a mild injury may not be readily detectable.

A mild brain injury may cause only a brief lapse in consciousness (or none at all). A concussion would be an example of a brain injury that is usually mild, although if someone suffers multiple concussions, the long-term effects can be quite serious. With a moderate or severe brain injury, unconsciousness may last much longer, and when someone is not conscious and doesn’t have a sleep-and-wake cycle, they are said to be in a coma.  

When a Brain Injury Causes Catastrophic Effects

Moderate and severe brain injuries can cause a number of physical, mental, and behavioral handicaps that can make it extremely difficult for victims to regain functions that enable them to work or even enjoy life the way they did before the injury. This includes difficulty concentrating or understanding information, insomnia, headaches, and anxiety disorders. They can also suffer complications such as:

• Posttraumatic seizures
• Deep vein thrombosis
• Gastrointestinal problems
• Hydrocephalus

Medical specialists use a variety of tools to measure a patient’s status after a brain injury. For instance, the Functional Independence Measure is an 18-point scale that assesses a patient’s abilities to function independently with regard to tasks such as getting around, caring for their own needs, and thinking logically. There is also a Disability Rating Scale and other ways to measure how severely a brain injury has impaired the ability to function. When the impacts are severe and long-lasting, the brain injury can be termed catastrophic.

Michael M. Day Law Firm Helps Victims with Brain Injuries and Their Families

When a brain injury was caused by negligence, such as in a motor vehicle accident, or deliberate wrongdoing, such as abuse by a caregiver in a nursing home or daycare center, the experienced and compassionate legal team at Michael M. Day Law Firm can help the victim and their family recover compensation to help provide the care needed to move forward with life. We fight to gain full compensation for the suffering and anguish caused by a brain injury because you deserve justice for all the aspects of life that have been destroyed. It is important to seek legal assistance quickly after an injury so that your legal team can start collecting evidence to build the best case for liability while evidence is still available. If you or a loved one suffered a brain injury that could have been caused by irresponsible behavior on the part of another person, call us at 404-480-4284 or contact us online today to schedule a free consultation and case evaluation.