Orlando Brain Injury Attorneys
Whether you live and work in the Orlando area, or it is a dream vacation destination, there is plenty to see and do here. Local and tourist favorites include the area’s theme parks, an aquarium, zip line experiences, and even skydiving. However, with all the adventures Orlando can provide, there are just as many ways a person can become injured.
Orlando Brain Injury LawyerAcquired brain injuries are among the most serious injuries a person can suffer, as they often result in permanent deficits that affect every part of life—from the physical, mental, and emotional impacts to the sometimes overwhelming financial consequences.
If you or your loved one have suffered a brain injury in Orlando that was the result of someone else’s careless or negligent actions, you may seek compensation for your injury through a brain injury lawsuit. An experienced Orlando Brain Injury Lawyer, like those at Michael T. Gibson, P.A, can assist you in understanding this legal process.
Understanding Brain Injuries
The brain is one of the most important organs of the body, helping to make up the central nervous system that controls all the body’s voluntary and involuntary responses. An acquired brain injury is one that is neither hereditary, congenital, degenerative, and it is not caused by birth trauma. Instead, it is damage to the brain caused by either an injury or an internal factor.
There are two types of brain injuries:
- Traumatic brain injuries: This type of injury is a result of a violent blow or jolt to the head or body such as that experienced by a motor vehicle accident, fall, assault including domestic violence or child abuse, sports and recreation activities, or military combat injuries including those caused by bullets, shrapnel, or explosive blasts.
- Non-traumatic brain injuries: These brain injuries are caused by internal factors such as oxygen deprivation occurring in a near-drowning or near-suffocation; and exposure to toxic substances or neurotoxic poisoning from carbon monoxide or lead exposure, a drug overdose, an electric shock, seizure, or an infectious disease.
The brain consists of several sections, known as lobes, and each lobe controls different functions of the body. Because the brain has only a limited ability to heal itself from an injury, the damage sustained in any particular lobe can create permanent deficits.
A glimpse of each lobe’s functions and the deficits caused by injuries to them includes:
- Frontal lobe: The frontal lobe controls such functions as attention, concentration, the ability to speak, awareness of abilities and limitations, personality, inhibition of behavior, emotions, planning, and judgment. Injuries to this part of the brain result in difficulties speaking, recalling events, and controlling behavior, emotions, or impulses.
- Temporal lobe: The ability to understand spoken language is one of the functions of the temporal lobe. Others include memory, sequencing, hearing, and organization. Temporal lobe injuries result in deficits such as difficulty with communication or memory.
- Occipital lobe: The occipital lobe’s function is entirely focused on vision. An injury to the occipital lobe of the brain often creates difficulties with an individual’s ability to see and perceive the size and shape of objects.
- Parietal lobe: The parietal lobe’s functions involve the primary senses, including depth perception, the identification of sizes, shapes, and colors, and the sense of touch. If an injury occurs to this part of the brain, an individual will experience difficulties with his or her five senses of vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch.
- Cerebellum: The cerebellum is the lobe that controls balance and coordinated movement. An injury to this area of the brain will cause mobility problems due to affected balance and coordination.
- Brain stem: Involuntary responses such as breathing, heart rate, consciousness, and sleep/wake cycles are all controlled by the brain stem. Injuries to this portion of the brain are generally fatal, as the body can’t sustain life without these voluntary responses. In fact, brain death occurs when all activity of the brain and brain stem has ceased.
It is worth noting that, while physicians categorize brain injuries as mild, moderate, or severe, there is nothing “mild” about a brain injury. A concussion—which is a term used to describe a “mild” traumatic brain injury—can result in permanent deficits and even post-concussion syndrome, which is a group of complications that include chronic headaches, loss of memory, depression, and other life-altering problems.