Oregon Injury Lawyer Blog

A report this weekend in The New York Times raised new, and troubling, issues regarding football helmets and their ability to protect younger players from traumatic brain injuries.

The newspaper reported that the NFL, last Friday, released data sets related to helmet testing, despite criticism that the information is potentially misleading. The league, its committee on head injuries and the player’s union all concurred in the action, the paper reported. According to the Times, the release took place despite criticism from Congress that the data involved is “infected”, rendering the results potentially misleading. Two months ago the league promised New York Congressman Anthony Weiner that the testing program that yielded the data would be abandoned.

Particularly at issue was the nature of the testing undergone by several leading brands of football helmet used in NFL games. According to the Times, the data compiled by the league and later confirmed by independent analysts sought to recreate the kind of hits the equipment would experience in an NFL game. The goal was to determine which brands of helmet offer the best protection against skull fractures – a serious concern for players at the NFL level. Aside from criticism of the tests’ methodologies, Congress and other critics took issue with the results issuing from these tests, in which certain brands were labeled “top performing” for professional use – a designation that makes a compelling selling point for manufacturers.

The problem for parents here in Oregon and elsewhere is that youth, high school and even college football games bear little resemblance to the NFL in either the speed of play or the intensity of hits. In particular, the skull fractures about which pros worry are relatively uncommon at lower levels of the sport, whereas concussions and traumatic brain injuries are the especially serious issues. Both Rep. Weiner and the league’s outside critics worry that parents or coaches shopping for safety gear may wind up buying helmets that are not necessarily designed to offer the sort of protection they are actually seeking.

The Times piece is a reminder of the important role Oregon product liability issues can play in Portland traumatic brain injury cases, especially those stemming from sports injuries. The disputes outlined by the newspaper highlight how complex and nuanced Oregon personal injury law cases focusing on sports equipment can be. This, in turn, is a reminder of the important role a Portland traumatic brain injury and spinal cord injury attorney can play in helping you sort through your legal options and obtain justice in the wake of an on-field tragedy.

The New York Times: Releasing Disputed Data on Helmets Puts Heat on NFL

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Posted In: Traumatic Brain Injuries

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If you arrive in a hospital emergency room unconscious and suffering from an Oregon traumatic brain injury can the doctors use you for a medical experiment without your consent? You might have thought the answer to that question was pretty obvious: absolutely not. According to a recent article in the Portland Tribune, however, you would be wrong.

The Tribune reports that researchers at Oregon Health & Science University, beginning this week, are using a loophole in federal regulations governing medical studies on humans to move ahead with an Oregon brain injury study. Under the so-called “community-wide study exception” the hospital has staged about 20 community meetings to explain its proposed brain injury study and may now presume that any unconscious person brought into the emergency room with an Oregon traumatic brain injury has consented to involvement in the study unless they are wearing a bracelet that declares otherwise, or family members arrive at the ER within one hour of the patient’s admission and refuse to consent to the injured person’s enrollment in the program.

The study in question involves use of progesterone, a hormone that may help severely injured patients recover from brain injuries. It raises, however, a broader question of what ‘informed consent’ ought to mean in the real world. Can an entire community legitimately be said to have agreed to be involved in a study on the basis of a series of public meetings, some of which, according to the paper, were attended by only a handful of people? What about people from elsewhere in Oregon or from out of state who are unlucky enough to be involved in a Portland auto accident and just happen to be taken to OHSU?

This development is particularly troubling for the precedent it sets. Indeed, the Tribune article notes that other studies have been conducted here in Oregon under the “community-wide” exception.

Situations like these are a reminder of the important role a Portland traumatic brain injury attorney can play in protecting your rights when you are unable to speak for yourself. Medical studies are important, but that does not mean a severely injured person’s consent to participate in a serious medical experiment ought to be presumed on the basis of where they live or what hospital first-responders happened to transport them to. An Oregon brain injury lawyer can work with your loved ones to ensure that your wishes are honored – not merely inferred.

Portland Tribune: Brain injury study hopes to overcome ‘consent’ concerns

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Posted In: Hospital Deaths , Medical Malpractice , Traumatic Brain Injuries

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A football player at Eastern Oregon University abruptly died last week after suffering an Oregon traumatic brain injury during what appeared to be an otherwise normal play, according to the Associated Press.

Dylan Steigers was 21. He had recently transferred to Eastern Oregon from the University of Montana and was listed as a freshman on the school’s football roster. The AP quotes school officials as saying they are investigating the incident, even as they offer counseling to Steigers’ teammates and family.

The Oregon traumatic brain injury that is believed to have led to Steigers death was an acute subdural hematoma, an injury in which jarring of the head leads to bleeding between the brain and the skull. The blood accumulation, in turn, puts pressure on the brain itself, a condition that can rapidly lead to serious injuries or death.

Despite the growing awareness around the country of the seriousness of sports-related head injuries – particularly for football players – athletes and their families need to remain aware of the possibility of serious Oregon head injuries while participating in school or college sports (there was a Congressional hearing on the subject just this week).

If you or a loved-one have been the victim of a severe Portland, Medford, Eugene or Corvallis brain or head injury one of the most important calls you can make is to an Oregon traumatic brain injury lawyer. An experienced Portland personal injury attorney with specializations in wrongful death, negligence and brain and spinal cord injury cases can offer invaluable advice on how the law is likely to look on your particular circumstances. Every case is different, but protecting your rights and achieving justice begins with an in-depth knowledge of Oregon’s courts and legal system.

AP at The Oregonian: Dylan Steigers, Eastern Oregon football player, dies after collision during scrimmage

AP at FoxSports.com: Officials look into football player’s death

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An appropriate piece of news with which to wrap up National Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness Month: with a speed few observers expected the National Hockey League has instituted new rules against hits to the head. The NHL Players Association, the final official body that needed to sign off on the rule change, gave its approval late last week. That accomplished, the changes taking effect immediately. The measure, which I wrote about earlier this month, is specifically designed to reduce the risk of traumatic brain injuries, and comes in the wake of several high profile incidents involving serious head injuries to players.

NCAA hockey has long banned hits to the head. Such a rule has been discussed on-and-off in the NHL for years, but had never seemed to gain much momentum (there was, in particular, a strong traditionalist faction in the League which opposed any move to lessen the sport’s roughness). Impetus for the new move appears to have come from a combination of two things. First, the Olympics – where hits to the head have long been banned. The Games may have shifted the conversation because they displayed, for fans and League officials alike, a consistently high level of rough play despite the ban on hits to the head. Second, immediately after the games the NHL was shocked by a rash of high-profile head injuries in the space of a few weeks.

All this month I have worked to highlight the dangers of Oregon traumatic brain injuries and the dire consequences that can follow for victims and their loved ones alike. While the media have recently emphasized the dangers of sports-related traumatic brain injuries, it is worth remembering that auto accidents are, by far, the most common causes of traumatic brain injuries in Oregon and nationwide.

In the wake of such a tragedy it is important to seek the advice of a Portland brain injury lawyer, who can offer advice on how the injury you or a loved one have sustained fits into the evolving legal landscape governing Oregon brain injuries. As I have highlighted throughout the month, this area of the law is evolving rapidly. That fact alone makes a consultation with an Oregon brain and spinal cord injury lawyer a crucial step on your road to recovery.

ESPN: NHLPA approves of head shot rule

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In the wake of raised awareness of the seriousness of traumatic brain injuries, the military has become the latest institution to adjust its rules in a bid to lessen traumatic brain injuries and their consequences.

The Defense Department announced earlier this month that it will “launch a new policy in the coming months that will make head-injury evaluations mandatory for all troops who suffer possible concussions.” As a recent article in the San Bernardino Sun noted, the concern is with secondary injuries.

“A second injury as the brain is recuperating from the first can cause brain cells to die, resulting in a permanent loss of function – or even death,” the newspaper reports.

In practical terms this means that troops exposed to an incident that may lead to a concussion or other traumatic brain injury (such as a roadside bombing in which they are significantly shaken up but have no other outward injuries) will be pulled from combat duty for 24 hours, even if they show no TBI symptoms. During that time they will be evaluated for signs of a traumatic brain injury, “such as ringing ears, double vision and (will undergo) an assessment of short term memory and concentration,” according to the Sun.

Here in Portland, an Oregon traumatic brain injury lawyer can help people who have fallen victim to an Oregon brain injury accident assess responsibility for the incident. If you feel that you or a loved one needs assistance in protecting your rights and achieving justice following an Oregon concussion or head injury, consulting with a Portland head injury attorney is the key first step in getting all the compensation to which you are entitled.

San Bernardino Sun: Military services beginning new focus on traumatic brain injuries

Defense Department News Release: Policy to Mandate Head Injury Evaluations

Resource:
Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury

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Following-up a story I blogged about last week, news reports today indicate that the NHL is seriously considering an immediate change to its rules that would lessen the risk of traumatic brain injuries by banning hits to the head. Though there have been several serious traumatic head injuries and concussions this season, the league’s public view as recently as 48 hours ago was that any move to revise the rules should wait for the offseason. League officials had cited the difficulties of briefing players and officials in mid-season as their reason for putting the issue off until the summer.

According to the Associated Press, however, thinking at the NHL’s Toronto headquarters has changed, and a proposed rule change tentatively approved by general managers last week may be implemented before the current regular season ends next month and before the Stanley Cup playoffs begin. The NHL’s board of governors will have the final say on the matter, but AP reports that a DVD presentation that “will illustrate what would, and wouldn’t, be allowed under the proposed rule change” has been prepared for circulation to all 30 NHL teams, as well as referees and League officials.

The move seems particularly apt since March is National Brain Injury Awareness Month. It comes at a time when awareness of the seriousness of traumatic brain injuries is rising throughout the sports world, in part because of the direct effect such injuries have on players and, in part, as an acknowledgement of the example professionals set for their younger fans in Oregon and throughout the nation.

Oregon traumatic brain injuries can be a shattering and life-altering experience for both victims and their families. Whether an injury occurs while playing sports, as a result of a Portland auto accident or because of an accident in the home, consulting with an Oregon traumatic brain injury attorney is an important step for the injured person, or loved ones, to take in the wake of a Portland brain or spinal cord injury. Depending on the circumstances and nature of the injury the victim may be entitled to substantial compensation to help pay for medical bills or cover lost wages and mitigate pain and suffering.

AP at ESPN.com: Report: Rule on blindside hits in the works

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Oregon does not have an NHL team, but many in the state who worry about Oregon traumatic brain injuries have been watching developments in the world of professional hockey over the last few days. As I have previously noted, NHL hockey differs in significant ways from the game TV viewers saw during last month’s Olympics. Among the biggest differences: the NHL still allows hits to the head – an action that carries a significant danger of traumatic brain injuries, even among athletes wearing helmets (which are required in the NHL). Such hits are banned in international hockey.

What brought this issue to the fore is not the fact that March is Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness month, but rather a gruesome incident in an NHL game last Sunday. During the third period of a game against the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins, Marc Savard of the Boston Bruins was knocked unconscious by a check to the head administered by Pittsburgh’s Matt Cooke. Savard, one of the team’s star forwards, was taken off the ice on a stretcher, wearing a head-brace. According to ESPN he has been diagnosed with a grade 2 concussion and is widely expected to be out for the remainder of the season.

What has outraged hockey fans – and not just in Boston – is the league’s decision not to punish Cooke for the infraction, despite the fact that he has been suspended on three previous occasions for unnecessarily rough play (two of those suspensions involved hits to the head). Even one of Cooke’s own teammates, Bill Guerin, “expected Cooke to be suspended”, according to the Boston Globe, and expressed incredulity when he was not. “If a guy gets hurt like that with a shot to the head, there’s got to be something,” the Globe quoted Guerin saying.

The lone bright spot in this story comes from reports that the hit on Savard – coming on the heels of several similar incidents this season – has prompted the League’s general managers to give serious consideration to changing NHL rules to outlaw all hits to head when the 2010-11 season begins next October.

Though Oregon has some of the country’s stronger laws concerning student athletes and head injuries, the ongoing debate in the NHL is a reminder that sometimes the legal system has to step in when the rules of the game are inadequate. If you or a loved one has sustained a concussion and believes an Oregon traumatic brain injury may have resulted, consulting with a Portland head injury lawyer is a prudent step. An experienced Oregon brain injury attorney can advise whether you are entitled to damages or other compensation as a result of the injury.

ESPN: GMs frame rule for hits to head

Boston Globe: Guerin: NHL should outlaw hits to head

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March is National Brain Injury Awareness Month, an appropriate moment to remind ourselves of the dangers that can accompany many otherwise fun and healthy activities. CBS Sports touches on this with the harrowing story of a teenager who sustained a concussion playing middle school football. Because the injury was not properly evaluated on the field Zachary Lystedt, then 13, returned to the game, with devastating consequences.

According to CBS, the teenaged Tahoma, Washington linebacker “writhed on the ground” after an initial hit near the end of the first half of a 2006 game. He returned to the field after halftime, but as the game ended collapsed in pain, his eyesight gone because swelling in his brain was cutting off an optic nerve. The teenager was rushed to the hospital where he spent a month in a coma, and another 20 months on a feeding tube. Today, “he has very little feeling and movement on his right side and remains dependent on a wheelchair,” according to CBS.

As he recovered Lystedt became an advocate for stronger rules governing student athletes and potential traumatic brain injuries. Last year Washington’s legislature passed a law, named in his honor, establishing “the most stringent return-to-play protocols of any state in the country,” according to CBS. Among other things, the law bars student-athletes who suffer a suspected concussion from returning to the playing field until they have been examined and cleared by a licensed medical professional. Lystedt now spearheads an effort to get similar legislation adopted in all 50 states, and possibly at the federal level.

The lingering effects of an Oregon traumatic brain injury can be devastating for friends and loved ones, as well as for the victim him or herself. If you, or a loved one, falls victim to an Oregon traumatic brain injury consulting with a Portland traumatic brain injury attorney at your earliest possible opportunity is an important early step toward protecting your rights and examining the legal implications of the injury and the circumstances surrounding it.

CBSSports.com: Young player helps turn trauma into action on concussions

Brain Injury Association of America: 2010 Brain Injury Awareness Month Homepage

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New parents have been told for years to use rear-facing car seats until their babies turn one year old and weigh 20 pounds, after which front-facing child seats are the norm. But data from both Oregon and the federal government are leading medical and safety professionals to reassess this long-held belief, according to state publications and a recent article in the Bend Bulletin.

Expert opinion is coalescing around the idea that children should face backwards until they are at least two years old, the Bulletin reports. Oregon’s Public Health Service adds that “children under the age of two are 75% less likely to be killed or severely injured in a motor vehicle crash is they are riding rear facing rather than forward facing.”

There is an especially great danger of Oregon traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries when young children are not properly restrained in an approved car seat. The Bulletin, citing child emergency physician Dennis Durbin, notes that “young children have weaker neck muscles than older children and adults. Their ligaments are looser. And the bones in the neck aren’t locked together in the same way as an adult’s.” These physiological factors put small children at a significantly higher risk of traumatic brain injuries when they are in a forward-facing car seat. Rear facing seats are safer because in a crash they tend to provide more support for a child’s neck and back.

In the horrifying event that your child suffers an Oregon traumatic brain injury as the result of a Portland, Beaverton or Corvallis auto accident the assistance of a Portland traumatic brain injury lawyer can be essential in helping you sort through the accident’s legal and financial consequences. An Oregon brain injury attorney can help address questions of fault and financial responsibility, and advise on compensation to which you may be entitled.

Bend Bulletin: Rethinking Car Seat Safety

Oregon DHS Public Health Office: Link to August 25, 2009 newsletter on car seats

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Posted In: Injuries to Minors , Spinal Cord Injuries , Traumatic Brain Injuries

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An Oregon bicycle and car accident in which a Portland man allegedly intentionally hit a cyclist is being heard in the Clatsop County courts. Prosecutors say the 23 year old driver “just took off” after hitting a cyclist in Seaside, according to TV station KVAL. The station reports that the suspect was found hiding in the woods after abandoning his truck near the scene of the accident.

The Oregonian reports that the cyclist was seriously injured in the incident, and that the driver has been charged with attempted murder, first-degree assault and felony hit-and-run. Bail was set at $250,000.

The accident is a reminder of the importance of both cycling safety, and of the need for the strict enforcement of laws requiring motor vehicles to share the road with law-abiding Oregon bicycle riders. Drivers who intentionally run down cyclists are, mercifully, rare. Far more common, however, are careless motorists who simply do not pay as much attention as they should to Oregon bike riders. A Portland bicycle injury lawyer can advise cyclists who have been hit by cars – whether accidentally or intentionally – on their legal rights and whether they are entitled to damages to cover expenses incurred as a result of an Oregon cycling accident involving a car or truck. Such accidents can be especially dangerous, since Portland cyclists hit by a car stand a significant chance of suffering an Oregon traumatic brain injury.

Oregon’s high quality of life is based, in part, on our state’s bicycle-friendly reputation. Bikes are entitled to share the roads with cars, and the legal system offers remedies for bikers who find that motorists are not holding up their end of the law.

The Oregonian: Portland-area man accused of deliberately running down a bicyclist on U.S. 101 near Seaside

KVAL.com: Oregon man accused of intentionally hitting cyclist with car

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Posted In: Bicycle Accidents , Motor Vehicle Accidents , Traumatic Brain Injuries

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The men’s hockey tournament at the Vancouver Winter Olympics got underway last night. As a recent article in the New York Times details, though many of the players appearing in the Olympics come from the NHL, hockey played under international rules – including all games in the Olympics – differs in several significant ways from the game Americans are accustomed to seeing. Many of the rule changes are designed to minimize traumatic brain injuries.

As the newspaper writes: “The biggest difference is on checks to the head. While the N.H.L. continues to debate whether some hits to the head should be penalized, the I.I.H.F. (hockey’s international governing body) has outlawed them.”

Another obvious difference: international hockey – like college hockey here in the States – shows no tolerance for on-ice fighting. More subtle differences include rules requiring visors and the use of chin straps on players’ helmets, and mandating that a player whose helmet comes off leave the ice immediately.

Taken collectively, the rules demonstrate a pronounced concern for player safety and a desire to prevent traumatic head injuries. The result will be games that, while hard-hitting, more closely resemble what one sees regularly in Oregon and elsewhere at the college level, as opposed to the NHL or other North American professional leagues.

These rule differences will come as a relief to anyone who has ever contemplated the effects of an Oregon traumatic brain injury and the effect it can have on a loved one’s life. If a loved one has been the victim of a Portland brain injury, whether through sports or as the result of an auto or bicycle accident, consulting with a Portland, Oregon traumatic brain injury attorney is a painful, but essential, step in the process of rebuilding a family’s life. Depending on the nature and circumstances of the injury your family, or loved one, may be entitled to compensation that will help cover medical bills, lost wages or other expenses.

New York Times: At Olympics, an NHL rink, but not an NHL style

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The venerable CBS Sunday morning show Face the Nation took a break from politics today to talk, with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell as the program’s main guest. Among the topics on the agenda: traumatic brain injuries, a subject that has been much in the news here in Oregon with the recent enactment of laws aimed at lessening the number of Oregon traumatic brain injuries sustained through youth sports, including football.

This is an issue I have written about before (see this post from last November), and one which has caused the NFL a certain amount of public relations trouble in recent months. On CBS, Goodell rejected any suggestion that the NFL has been, as host Bob Schieffer put it, “late to recognize” the seriousness of concussions and brain injuries as a problem at the professional level. The commissioner said the league has been on top of the issue “since the mid-90s”; adding: “Medical science is still trying to determine what are the long-term effects of concussions. How do you treat these?”

This is a position with which some might take issue. As I noted in November, the league is working to counter accusations it ignored or downplayed the seriousness of concussions in football for years. When Schieffer pointed out that the NFL’s own studies show that football players are five times more likely than members of the general population to suffer brain injuries or memory loss and that among 30-49 year olds that figure rises to 19 times the average, Goodell was quick to dismiss the very NFL studies he had been touting as examples of League responsibility a few minutes earlier. “This wasn’t a medical survey,” he said.

Oregon’s leadership on the issue of brain injuries has recently been praised by outside activists. Our new laws, however, are not likely to eliminate Oregon brain injuries entirely. If a tragedy like this befalls a member of your family, or if you believe a sports injury sustained years ago is now manifesting itself in the form of memory loss, it is important that you contact an Oregon traumatic brain injury lawyer at the earliest feasible time. The process of safeguarding your rights begins with an understanding of where you stand in legal terms. Every situation is different, but a Portland sports injury lawyer can help in sorting through the difficulties of your particular circumstances.

Face the Nation web page (includes video of the full interview with Goodell)

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A recent New York Times article highlights an area where Oregon and other Pacific Northwest states are leading the nation: laws and policies recognizing the growing seriousness of concussions and other brain injuries in sports.

As the paper notes, “last year Washington and Oregon passed the first concussion-specific laws covering scholastic sports.” As I have previously noted (see this blog entry from November), traumatic brain injuries are increasingly being acknowledged as a problem, particularly in professional football. The Times notes that Florida Governor Charlie Crist is trying to use the fact that the Super Bowl is being played in his state this week to spur his own legislature on to passing brain injuries legislation. The Oregon brain injury laws, however, are among the first in the nation to acknowledge the extent to which this problem also exists in college, high school and even youth sports. The Times notes that traumatic brain injury laws focusing on student-athletes are currently being considered by legislatures in Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York, as well as Florida.

The Winter Olympics, due to begin February 12 in Vancouver, Canada, may also bring some of these issues into focus. As a recent Los Angeles Times article recounts, several top American snowboarders have recently been seriously injured, including Kevin Pearce, widely considered a possible gold medalist in half-pipe but hospitalized in Utah since December with a severe brain injury sustained during training.

If you or a loved one have been the victim of an Oregon traumatic brain injury it is important to consult with a Portland personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after the incident. Treating Oregon traumatic brain injuries can cost thousands of dollars. If someone else – by either through their actions or through negligence – is responsible for a brain injury the injured party may be entitled to compensation.

New York Times: States taking lead in addressing concussions

Los Angeles Times: Snowboarder Shaun White’s new Olympic reality: It’s no cakewalk

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The New York Times reports today that the two doctors leading the NFL’s study of concussions and other head injuries have quit following charges that they do not take evidence of mounting long-term brain injuries among professional football players sufficiently seriously. It is a development with resonance for those battling Oregon traumatic brain injuries.

As the paper notes, one of the doctors, Ira Casson, has been a member of the league’s committee on brain injuries since 1994 and has co-chaired the committee since 2007. According to the paper, “Casson has been the league’s primary voice discrediting all evidence linking football players with subsequent dementia.” He has recently been criticized both by the families of former NFL players and by members of Congress.

At issue, and of interest to those of us outside the world of professional football, is whether the accumulation of repeated, more minor, head injuries can add up to a traumatic brain injury over time. One need not take the sort of punishment football players endure every week to be in a situation where the sum of many concussions is greater than the damage done by the individual parts.

The issue of Oregon traumatic brain injuries has also been on the local agenda here in the Portland area during 2009. This summer the governor signed an Oregon traumatic brain injury bill mandating that insurers cover medically necessary cognitive therapy for those suffering from Oregon traumatic brain injuries. Another law signed at the same time mandates education for high school football coaches in the hopes of cutting down on Oregon traumatic brain injuries at the high school level.

Despite the new legislation, the ongoing debate in the NFL highlights the extent to which brain injuries remain a subject of controversy. A Portland traumatic brain injury lawyer can help you or your loved ones sort through the changing legal landscape and claim the damages to which you are entitled if you believe you or a member of your family has suffered an Oregon brain injury.

CNN: NFL needs help in policy to deal with dangerous concussions

New York Times: NFL head injury study leaders quit

Resource:
Brain Injury Association of Oregon

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Natasha Richardson, who died this month from a traumatic brain injury, was just 45-years-old. The movie star was young, talented, had a loving husband and two young boys, and no one expected her to die so suddenly and unexpectedly—after a fall on a beginner’s ski slope.

Richardson struck her head, and although there are reports that she initially turned down an offer for medical attention—it wouldn’t be until a second ambulance arrived at the ski resort that she was finally whisked away—one can’t help but wonder how her life’s story would have turned out if she or someone else had known enough to insist that she receive medical care immediately.

Autopsy reports indicate that the movie star died because of a blunt impact to the head that resulted in an epidural hematoma. This kind traumatic brain injury can cause the brain to swell and bleeding to occur. It can also take awhile for symptoms of this TBI to appear, and if too much time passes, this injury can prove fatal.

Common causes of an epidural hematoma include fall accidents, assault incidents, motor vehicle crashes, motorcycle accidents, and slip accidents. Of course, there are other kinds of traumatic brain injuries that can also occur from these kinds of accidents.

The sooner someone with a TBI or another kind of head injury gets medical attention—even if the injury appears mild or minor—the faster any potentially serious condition can be diagnosed and the more time there will be to prevent the injury from becoming catastrophic or fatal.

A person who survives an accident with a serious brain injury could end up permanently impaired and debilitated and, depending on the seriousness of the TBI, require ongoing, costly medical care. The financial and emotional toll on the TBI patient and his or her family can be tragically life changing, which is why, if someone you love sustained a traumatic brain injury in an Oregon accident that occurred because another party was negligent, you should speak to a Portland personal injury lawyer as soon as possible.

Richardson died during Brain Injury Awareness month.

911 Calls Show Urgency Of Richardson Fall, CBS News, March 31, 2009

Actress Natasha Richardson buried in Upstate New York, Chicago Tribune, March 23, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Brain Injury Awareness Month 2009

Brain Injury Association of America

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