Brain Injury in Children

Brain injury is the most frequent cause of death and disability among infants, children and adolescents. Head injuries in children account for approximately 100,000 hospitalizations every year. A blow to the head of a child can cause brain damage in a split second, often times resulting in the need for life-long medical care. A brain injury can affect a child’s vision, speech, hearing, sense of touch, breathing, and mobility. Symptoms may show up immediately after an injury, in other cases symptoms may be delayed for an extended period. In many cases, a child’s brain injury is the result of someone else’s negligence. If your child has suffered a brain injury, it is essential that you contact a California brain injury lawyer as soon as possible. At the Law Offices of Bailey & Partners, our experienced brain injury attorneys are here to help. Brain injury cases involving children are often more complex than adult brain injury cases. Without academic records or prior job history, it may be very difficult to tell the extent of damage to a child’s brain functions. At Bailey & Partners, our attorneys are familiar with the unique aspects of child brain injuries and can help you recover compensation for your child’s injuries.

Causes of Child Brain Injuries

Child brain injury can come from a variety of sources, including:

• falls
• motor vehicle accidents
• bicycle accidents
• child abuse (including Shaken Baby Syndrome)
• injury from sporting events
• infections
• drowning accidents
• carbon monoxide poisoning (and other accidents causing oxygen deprivation)
• birth injuries

Effects of Child Brain Injuries

It was once thought that children could recover from brain injuries better than adults could. However, new research has shown that children are more susceptible than adults are to permanent brain damage, even when the forces involved are equivalent. Children’s skulls are only 1/8 as strong as that of adults, and are much more vulnerable to brain injury through deformation and fracture of the skull. Some neurologic problems in children after a head injury may not be immediately apparent. Frontal lobe functions, for example, develop later in a child’s growth, and damage to this area may not be apparent until the child reaches adolescence when higher-level reasoning develops. Parents, teachers and caregivers may mistakenly assume brain injury victims have mental retardation or leaning disabilities. Depending upon the injury, children with brain injury may have some of the following problems:

• Physical challenges include problems walking, balancing, talking, seeing, hearing, or smelling. They may have recurrent headaches or seizures and are frequently fatigued.
• Cognitive challenges include problems with thinking, understanding and reasoning. Memory may be affected and the child may have trouble reading, writing and communicating.
• Behavioral challenges such as personality and behavioral problems are common. Changes in mood, depression, and exhibitions of anger can increase.

Sports Injuries

Brain injuries in children who participate in sports have become an increasing problem. Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) is an incurable and debilitating disease that is caused by repeated trauma to the head in full-contact sports such as football and hockey. Concussions have also increased in youth football players and a coach’s failure to recognize the symptoms of a concussion can lead to serious brain injury. Repeated concussions sustained in full-contact sports can also cause development of CTE in young players.

California Child Brain Injury Lawyer

Brain injuries suffered by a child can cause life-long problems and have devastating consequences. If your child has suffered a brain injury, you may have a claim for compensation. At the Law Offices of Bailey & Partners, our experienced brain injury attorneys will aggressively fight for your legal rights. We can help you recover compensation from the responsible party for medical care, rehabilitation, lost wages, and other types of damages. Call us today for a free case evaluation.