A previous post on this blog from last year’s Brain Injury Awareness Month talked about common causes of traumatic brain injuries. As that post discussed, traumatic brain injuries are a subset of acquired brain injuries or ABIs.
For this year’s Brain Injury Awareness Month, which is taking place during March, we thought it might be helpful to go over a few other common causes of ABIs that are not classified as traumatic brain injuries. Although these types of brain injuries do not necessarily involve a blow or other force to the head, they can be just as serious as traumatic brain injuries. Moreover, like traumatic brain injuries, many ABIs are preventable.
For instance, exposure to certain toxins, electrical shocks and near drownings are all causes of brain injuries. Sometimes, these sorts of events really are just accidents. However, in many other cases, these sorts of incidents turn out to be preventable.
For instance, near drownings may happen on a premises that is unsafe, meaning that the landowner could be liable for damages. Likewise, severe electrical shocks can happen because of unsafe working conditions or on account of a defective product or piece of machinery.
Many brain injuries happen because of medical conditions, like some form of oxygen deprivation or because of a stroke or brain tumor. Again, these things can happen when one is ill. At other times, the brain injury can ultimately be blamed on medical errors, like a misdiagnosis or a mistake during a procedure.
Any acquired brain injury is potentially the basis for the victim to file a claim for compensation. Still, filing such a claim can be complicated. This is why Louisiana brain injury victims and their families should consider seeking the assistance of an experienced attorney.