Traumatic Brain Injury

Pittsburgh PA Medical Malpractice & Personal Injury Lawyers

When a person sustains a traumatic brain injury (TBI), whether due to a physical blow, lack of oxygen to the brain, or illness, their life will be drastically changed. The brain controls and defines a person in ways that the rest of the body doesn't, so a brain injury is different than an injury to a muscle, limb, or other organ. The brain doesn't heal from injury in the same way that other parts of the body do, and the injured person may never be the same.

Traumatic brain injury can be the result of medical malpractice or negligence on the part of a medical professional or other person, and can occur in a number of different ways:

• Hypoxia / Anoxia - Irreversible brain damage can occur when a person is unable to breathe or their breathing is impaired for a period of time, as there may not be enough oxygen getting to the brain. Hypoxic brain injury can occur when the brain receives limited oxygen, and anoxic brain injury can occur when the brain receives no oxygen. Either of these types of brain injury can occur when a patient is under the effect of anesthesia if the anesthesiologist is not properly monitoring the patient.
  
• Open Head Injury - an object penetrates the skull and damages the brain, such as a gunshot wound, or industrial accident. This type of accident usually occurs when there is a great rate of velocity involved in the object striking the skull.
  
• Closed Head Injury - the brain is damaged due to impact to the skull as in a car accident, a fall, physical assault, or any other blow to the head.
  
• Infections - if the barrier between the brain and the surrounding membranes is breached, the brain is very susceptible to infection. Bacteria and viruses can cause serious and potentially life-threatening diseases of the brain and meninges including encephalitis and meningitis.
  
• Stroke - when a person has a stroke, the flow of blood can be blocked causing cell death in the affected area. If there is bleeding in the brain due to a tear in an artery or a vein, loss of blood flow to the brain and injury to the brain tissue by the blood will result in brain damage. If a doctor fails to recognize and diagnose the symptoms of a stroke, they may be held responsible for that patient's brain damage.
  

If you or a loved one has sustained a traumatic brain injury in Pennsylvania and may be the victim of medical malpractice, contact Meyers Giuffre Evans & Schwarzwaelder for a free consultation. Our medical malpractice attorneys are dedicated to representing victims of medical malpractice, and have been serving Pittsburgh Pennsylvania for over 40 years.