August 11, 2012 (Press-News.org) Of the many severe injuries that car and truck accident victims can suffer, brain injuries can be the most difficult to properly diagnose. Accident victims who have suffered head trauma frequently consult with a personal injury lawyer to help them pursue compensation that will meet their long term medical expenses and other damages.
A recent brain injury study published in the Journal of Neuroscience further explores the connections that medical experts have identified between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and Alzheimer's disease. The authors cite compelling evidence that a single occurrence of TBI can trigger brain chemistry changes associated with the development of senility, dementia, memory loss and other symptoms of Alzheimer's.
The neurologists based their study on changes that occurred in the brains of mice within two days of a single TBI episode, as well as analysis of samples of brain tissue from autopsies of known Alzheimer's patients. The study detected a reduction in the level of two intracellular brain proteins in the mice as well as an increase in a particular enzyme, two chemical factors that were also present in the Alzheimer patients.
The presence of these proteins helps the brain maintain normal function, and the authors hope that their research will lead to drug therapies that can delay the development of Alzehimer's. In the aftermath of any head injury, thorough assessment of the injury victim's condition is vital to detect TBI symptoms and properly monitor the patient's progress.
Traumatic Brain Injury: What Are the Symptoms?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides detailed information about the extent of TBI in the U.S. Based on data from emergency room visits, hospitalization and fatalities, an average of 1.7 million Americans suffer TBI in a given year.
TBI is characterized by a variety of symptoms, including changes in mental status, unconsciousness and amnesia. While the word "traumatic" suggests a serious blow or penetrating head injury, TBI can also result from minor blows, bumps or jolts. Brain injury specialists designate TBI from mild to severe based on the extent of the symptoms, not the violence of the injury.
Concussions are one of the most common forms of TBI, and they can result from forces that make the head move rapidly with no actual blow the head. While significant progress in concussion awareness has taken place in recent years, injury victims, caregivers and family members should be on the watch for headaches, dizziness, irritability, balance problems or a lack of clear thinking after a car accident, athletic injury or other trauma.
Helping Injury Victims Seek Compensation for Head Injuries
One potential pitfall for brain injury victims is settling an injury claim with an insurance company or other party before the extent of medical harm is fully understood. A person who believes they suffered only temporary symptoms may find weeks or months later that lack of concentration, headaches or fatigue has limited their ability to remain employed or lead life as before.
Every type of personal injury has the potential to cause lasting harm to the brain, not just bike accidents, car accidents, diving accidents or industrial accidents. Research linking a single head trauma to the long term potential of developing Alzheimer's is one more very good reason for injury victims to ensure that they receive a comprehensive medical diagnosis.
A brain injury lawyer can help clients explore their options for adequate medical care and document the full extent of the loss of function they have suffered. Hope for significant treatment progress in coming years is a cause for optimism.
Article provided by The Johnston Law Firm LLC
Visit us at www.johnston-lawfirm.com
New Brain Injury Study Links Single Head Trauma and Alzheimer's
A recent brain injury study published in the Journal of Neuroscience further explores the connections that medical experts have identified between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and Alzheimer's disease.
2012-08-11
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
An Uncivil War: What to Do When Custody Battles Cross State Lines
2012-08-11
The majority of the states in America (including West Virginia) and the District of Columbia have adopted a model rule -- the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA) -- to guide family court judges making or modifying interstate or international child custody agreements.
When is the UCCJEA Applicable?
The UCCJEA does not automatically apply to every child custody dispute that happens to involve parents in different states or countries. The UCCJEA sets forth a number of possible scenarios, one of which must exist before a family court judge ...
New Motorcycle Riders at Highest Risk for Accidents
2012-08-11
In June 2012, a 37-year-old man, just about to retire as a Marine, was riding his motorcycle in North Carolina. It was dark, in the early morning hours, and the North Carolina Highway Patrol said he took a turn too fast and caused his motorcycle to flip on a ramp going towards westbound US 70. The man was ejected off his motorcycle and struck a sign. He sustained fatal injuries.
The cause of the motorcycle accident is unclear. Weather was not a factor, and a toxicology report was requested. Since the results of the toxicology test are not known, it is possible alcohol ...
Large Gifts as a Strategic Part of Family Wealth Transfer
2012-08-11
The larger the gift, the more strategic the giver must be in planning and executing it.
This is not only because a recipient can generally do more with a bigger gift than a smaller one. To maximize the size of the gift itself, it is important to minimize the impact of all types of inheritance taxes, including estate and gift taxes. This requires careful choices concerning how a wealth transfer is structured.
This article will discuss a particular choice facing wealthy families in New Jersey and across the country: whether and how to make gifts to family members to ...
Florida Women Protected by Federal Pregnancy Discrimination Laws
2012-08-11
With the recent appointment of accomplished executive and mother-to-be Marissa Mayer as Yahoo!'s new CEO making headlines about the relationship between pregnancy and career, all working women should review the law that protects them from discrimination based on their pregnancy or childbirth.
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act is an amendment to the Civil Rights Act that protects women from workplace discrimination arising from a pregnancy or childbirth and any related conditions. It bars employers from discriminating against a woman ...
The Affordable Care Act and Medical Debt
2012-08-11
Medicine is supposed to be about helping sick people, not hounding them about their debts. That should be a self-evident proposition in a culture that respects human dignity and values quality medical care.
But the high-pressure medical debt collection tactics allegedly used by Accretive Health, a collector hired by the Fairview Hospital system, have been documented by the Minnesota attorney general's office. In May of 2012, Accretive admitted that it regularly called patients at home before medical procedures and talked with others in emergency rooms.
The Accretive ...
Eligibility for Disability Benefits Due to a Mental Health Condition
2012-08-11
Most everyone understands that the Social Security Administration (SSA) provides disability benefits for physical injuries and disabling diseases, from paralysis or traumatic brain injury to chronic painful conditions such as carpal tunnel or back pain. However, the range of conditions covered by Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) includes many debilitating mental disorders.
People who cannot work because of major depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, panic or other mental health conditions should understand their eligibility ...
New Research Links Overworked Nurses to Poorer Patient Care
2012-08-11
For years, as cash-strapped hospitals have slashed staffing budgets to pad the bottom line, nurses have protested that fewer of them translates into more hospital errors. A new study seems to back up this reasoning, although perhaps not for the reasons you may expect.
Nurse Burnout Causes Infections in Thousands of Pennsylvanians Every Year
In the past, low hospital staffing has simply been thought of as a numbers game -- fewer caregivers provide a lower standard of care. But, the recent research shows that the effect of subpar staffing levels runs much deeper: it ...
Vibrant Twin Cities Bike Culture Seeks Safety in Numbers
2012-08-11
In blazing heat or bitter cold, the Twin Cities has a reputation as one of the most bike-friendly areas in the country. But with motorists, bicyclists and motorcyclists all trying to share the road, building a transit system that is safe for all concerned remains a work in progress.
After all, there are still far too many bike accidents in which cars or trucks hit bicyclists. Those accidents are often serious and sometimes fatal. There are also far too many close calls, as well as too many pedestrian accidents. The Minneapolis - St. Paul area may be better than most ...
The Facts Behind the Blitz USA Bankruptcy
2012-08-11
Blitz USA, recently announced that it is closing its doors after nearly fifty years in operation. The company claims the reason for bankruptcy is unwarranted products liability litigation. News sources across the nation have attacked trial lawyers for the "frivolous lawsuits" that caused the company to close.
Lawyers make a politically expedient scapegoat for people with a vested interest in ignoring problems.
Here are the facts: More than seventy-five people were horribly burned by Blitz gas cans and many burned to death; all because the company failed ...
Offshore Account Gamechange: FATCA Reporting Requirements
2012-08-11
To use a basketball analogy, the IRS is increasingly putting on the full-court press when it comes to collecting money from Americans with offshore accounts.
This article will discuss how the IRS may use the Foreign Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) to turn up the pressure on Americans with foreign bank accounts to disclose more information and pay more taxes.
OVDI and FATCA
Since 2009, the agency has already offered two rounds of an Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative (OVDI) aimed at increasing compliance with the reporting requirements on foreign accounts. The ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
British Sleep Society advocates for permanent Standard Time in the UK
Can mobile phone networks and Bluetooth technology help researchers improve animal tracking?
Does the availability of parental leave affect social norms on gender division of childcare?
Can reducing moose numbers help protect Canadian caribou populations from wolf predation?
How limiting new fast-food outlets may reduce childhood obesity
Sleep experts call for UK to abolish twice-yearly clock changes
Risk of cardiovascular disease linked to long-term exposure to arsenic in community water supplies
Taking the “vibrational fingerprints” of molecules got 100 times faster
Gardens prevent pollinators from starving when farmland nectar is scarce, new study finds
Addiction treatment decreases suicide risk among people with opioid dependence
Abundant urban green space linked to lower rates of heat related illness and death
Lifetime sudden cardiac death risk 4+ times higher for those with schizophrenia
Scurvy may be re-emerging amid cost of living crisis and rise of weight loss surgery
Ethical framework aims to counter risks of geoengineering research
New AI tool set to be a “game changer” in improving outcome predictions for kidney transplant patients
New VUMC hospital expansion to be named Jim Ayers Tower
New drug, WNTinib, delays tumor growth and improves survival in mouse models of children’s liver cancer
Clinical study confirms tissue stiffening in breast cancer can drive metastasis
Medicare has a revolving door, study suggests
Floor swabbing could help prevent COVID-19 outbreaks in hospitals
Paws of polar bears sustaining ice-related injuries in a warming Arctic
Politics may influence gift-giving choices more than personal purchases
Listening skills bring human-like touch to robots
Acclaimed WVU doctor and researcher elected to National Academy of Medicine
New study reveals larger insects' critical role in decomposition in arid ecosystems
NASA reveals prototype telescope for gravitational wave observatory
A new kind of authoritarianism: Democracy in decline at home and abroad
Performance in physical tests can help manage treatment for metastatic lung cancer
Expanding access to weight-loss drugs could save thousands of lives a year
Harnessing science to tackle global crises
[Press-News.org] New Brain Injury Study Links Single Head Trauma and Alzheimer'sA recent brain injury study published in the Journal of Neuroscience further explores the connections that medical experts have identified between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and Alzheimer's disease.