Seizures Occur in One in 10 Cases of Traumatic Brain Injury

This month I have written a series of articles about traumatic brain injuries. I have also filmed some videos.

One topic of extreme concern related to a traumatic brain injury or a TBI is seizures. About one out of every 10 people who has a TBI will end up having accompanying seizures. Often these will occur in the first days or weeks after the traumatic brain injury and are like the sort of epileptic seizures you may see on television.

You may know a family member who has this disconcerting condition where you have muscle movement that’s beyond your control; you may seem to lose consciousness. It’s electrical signals in your brain that are being disruptive and are not doing what they should do. If you or a family member is having seizures, it’s a very frightening thing because they cannot control it and they don’t know when it will come on.

According to a study by Stuart A. Yablon and Alan R. Towne, as many as 1.7 million people a year sustain a TBI and there are about 52,000 deaths. In some cases seizures will become a long-term problem, known as chronic epilepsy. Patients with traumatic brain injury are at higher risk of developing chronic epilepsy than someone who has not had a brain injury.

There are a number of kinds of seizure.

1 Absence Seizures

Consciousness is not affecting during absence seizures. The patient is able to respond to questions and commands and can even remember events that occurred during the seizure.

2 Focal Seizures Without Impairment of Consciousness

These include motor seizures which include localized stiffening or jerking of the face or an extremity on the same side of the body, autonomic seizures which may include a change in the heart rate or the breathing rate and a sensation in the chest; psychic seizures in which patients feel fear and anxiety and sensory seizures in which a patient may have an unpleasant taste  or vision.

3 Focal Seizures With Impairment of Consciousness

These kinds of seizures were previously called complex partial seizures. They are characterized by automatic movements and a loss of consciousness

4 Tonic Seizures

Tonic seizures are accompanies by the flexing or the extension of both the arms and legs.

Traumatic brain injuries can entail many symptoms which is why they are among the most serious injuries we see as Virginia personal injury lawyers.  They include cognitive defects.

TBI causes several kinds of brain damage that affect the cerebral cortex, subcortical nuclear structures or other brain structures. TBI and symptoms after concussion, vary from mild to severe. Memory loss is one of the most common symptoms, I see as an injury lawyer. Attention deficits and working memory problems can have a severe impact on your life as can a seizure.

If you have suffered a brain injury in a car crash or any other accident, call Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers at 757.455.0077 or see CooperHurley.com.