Florida Injury Lawyer Blog
Chris Nowinski of the Sports Legacy Institute has been giving speeches across the country and raising awareness about head injuries. He has especially been raising awareness about the dangers of brain injuries affecting athletes and young athletes. According to Nowinski, he himself was injured often while playing sports as a young child and a young man and he says that a culture of playing with injuries is causing serious injuries among students and athletes. Nowinski himself was in some cases not diagnosed with a concussion until weeks after the event and he says that he, like many student athletes, was encouraged to keep playing after being hit in the head, as long as he did not appear to be too injured.
In recent years, doctors and researchers have learned more about traumatic brain injury and have learned that repeated so-called minor concussions can lead to serious brain injury. Now, doctors are revising what is known about head injuries. The resulting changes could mean that Miami head injuries may be more common among student athletes than previously thought.
Today, doctors know that being hit in the head and experiencing even minor symptoms – such as mild dizziness, seeing stars, and headaches – can be a sign of a concussion. Doctors have also seen that athletes who sustain multiple head injuries – as a result of a sport, for example – sustain long-term damage. Many sports stars who die suddenly or commit suicide after a long career involving multiple concussions, for example, are found to have extensive brain damage. This new knowledge suggests that Miami students and athletes who sustain a minor concussion or multiple so-called minor concussions may in fact sustain a serious Miami brain injury.
According to researchers, those who are repeatedly hit in the head sustain what is known as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). The disease can affect normal brain functioning and can lead to cognitive problems, depression, and death.
Part of the problem with Miami brain injuries is that in some cases it can take weeks for symptoms to develop. It can take another month for the brain to heal properly after a concussion and if another head injury develops in this time it can make the situation even more dire. However, after a Miami car accident or sports injury causing a concussion, most people return to everyday activities and even sports quickly, especially if they do not have serious symptoms. Many insurance companies want to resolve car accident claims quickly as well, which can mean that patients may have a hard time getting compensation for injuries if their symptoms take some time to develop. According to Nowinski and other experts, an entirely new approach is need to help patients deal with brain injuries. The entire culture of sports and injury treatment needs to change to ensure that patients with head injuries get the treatment they need to avoid CTE.
If you have sustained a Miami brain injury, contact the Flaxman Law Group to arrange for a free accident consultation to discuss your options. The Flaxman Law Group is a full-service law firm that can take care of investigation, discovery, insurance company negotiation, and all aspects of your case so that you can focus on healing.