BRAIN INJURIES HAVE SERIOUS RAMIFICATIONS IN BRITISH COLUMBIA

According to medical statistics, brain injuries are on the rise, and the impacts are grave. With 50,000 Canadians already suffering brain injuries on an annual basis, the legal and financial impacts of such injuries may be under observation.

Brain injuries are divided into multiple classifications depending on their nature. An examination of the different categories of brain injury reveals that neurotrauma brain and spinal cord injuries cost $2 billion to 3 billion each year in Ontario alone, with a typical medical bill of $400,000 being generated for each incident. In all Canadians 40 years of age and below, traumatic brain injury is the number one fatal and disabling condition, and of those that suffer TBI, 50 percent sustain their personal injuries in motor accidents.

Brain injury sufferers also run a higher risk for subsequent brain injuries; the likelihood of a successive injury increases after the first incident. The long-term ramifications of brain injuries are numerous, but complications potentially include lasting psychiatric problems and greater risk of other bodily injuries. Although young males are at a higher risk of brain injury than their female counterparts are, the numbers even out in elderly populations.

Those who sustain brain injuries may not know it; seemingly minor impacts can cause cellular damage that might eventually lead to other problems. Because such complications may take time to manifest, those who get hurt in car accidents and similar circumstances may allow themselves to go untreated for significant periods. However, such injuries might result in expensive treatment costs and other living expenses; some may even find it necessary to seek damages from the party that injured them through civil action taken in court.

Source: Brain Injury Society of Toronto, “Brain Injury Fact & Figures”, October 13, 2014