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Massachusetts Brain Injury Lawyer

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According to the Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA), approximately 44,000 Massachusetts residents suffer traumatic brain injuries each year. Causes run the gamut from slip-and-fall accidents, car accidents and assaults, to sports concussions and Shaken Baby Syndrome. Across the United States, more than 50,000 people will lose their lives as a result of traumatic brain injuries each year, and someone sustains a traumatic brain injury every 21 seconds. And finally, according to the BIAA, approximately 5.3 million Americans are forced to live with conditions resulting from TBI, meaning that those who survive TBI are left with neuropsychological impairments that result in disabilities that affect work life, family life, and social activity.

There are several different types of brain injury. The most common are open head injury, in which the skull and/or brain have been penetrated, leading to brain injury; closed head injury, which results when the head receives a blow or jolt, deceleration injury, in which a sudden stop causes the skull to stop as well, but the brain to continue moving; and acquired brain injury, which is caused by a lack of blood flow or oxygen to the brain. Some examples of incidents that could cause acquired brain injury include near-drowning, asphyxiation, stroke or heart attack, lightning strike and infection.

In some cases, traumatic brain injury may not be detected until well after the accident or impact occurs. In these cases, swelling and bleeding into and around the brain may have already taken place. Brain injuries are typically classified as mild, moderate, and severe; their effects can be short-term, lifelong, or even fatal.

The symptoms of brain injury include memory loss, slowed ability to process information, cognitive impairments, difficulty concentrating or paying attention, communication problems, fatigue, headaches, vision impairment, balance problems, depression or mood swings, impulsive behavior, agitation and anxiety, to name just a few.

If you or someone you love has been involved in an accident that results in brain injury, whether the injury is mild or not, you should hire a Massachusetts brain injury lawyer or attorney to help you recover damages. A settlement can help cover current and future medical expenses, and you may even be able to recover monies for pain and suffering. Because each state has its own set of brain injury and personal injury laws, a brain injury lawyer or attorney will be well versed in the Massachusetts laws, statutes, and codes relative to brain injury.

The costs of a traumatic brain injury can be very high, with a lifetime cost for one person surviving from a severe traumatic brain injury reaching $4 million, and the direct and indirect costs of traumatic brain injuries estimated at 48.3 billion annually in the United States.

In recent brain injury news, the commonwealth settled a class action lawsuit with Bay State Brain Injury patients. The suit was filed to get the state of Massachusetts to provide community based care for nursing home brain injury patients. It was alleged by 2,000 of the patients in the nursing home that their lives had become isolated due to their confinement of nursing homes, which violates the federal law. They will now be able to move to enhanced services or community placements. This means brain injury patients can live more easily amongst friends and family while receiving better health care.

If at all possible, seek counsel immediately the statute of limitations to file your claim in the state of Massachusetts is three years. Procrastinating could be costly and it could hinder your case in many ways. When seeking a brain injury lawyer or attorney, look for one who has experience and success in litigating brain injury cases. To locate an experienced and successful brain injury lawyer or attorney in Massachusetts, please visit the American Bar Association website.

A lawyer can help to alleviate a lot of the stress associated with a brain injury and the legal proceedings following, so it's important to trust the lawyer you choose and be comfortable with them. This gives you the ability to recover while the focus on getting you your fair compensation that is deserved.