The brain controls every bodily function, from breathing to motion. The brain relevance makes it susceptible to both minor and major injuries.
Usually, there are many medical errors that affect the normal brain functionality, some of which causing irreversible damages.
Treating brain injuries is very expensive and time consuming. As such, a settled medical malpractice claim goes a long way to ensure that you are able to cater for such treatment costs. Additionally, the medical malpractice lawsuits are a regulatory measure that help increase care and focus when conducting delicate medical procedures.
When errors occur in the medical field, you are likely to sustain serious brain injuries that have life-changing impacts, such as paralysis.
In this article, we will discuss the various effects of brain injuries that are caused by medical negligence.
Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy mainly develops during childbirth, where the brain suffers significant shock due to excessive stresses on the head during delivery.
The infant’s fragile skull transfers all the pressure to the delicate brain when it is subjected to external stresses. The constricted breathing also causes oxygen deprivation in the brain, leading to the damaging of important neural pathways.
When the brain part that controls motor functions is damaged, cerebral palsy develops. The affected child exhibits poor coordination in his body movements, and the situation gets worse as the child grows if it is not addressed early enough.
Intracranial Aneurysm
If the surgeons are negligent, a minor foreign debris (like an air bubble) can find its way into the bloodstream.
As such, the foreign debris can travel to the brain and cause internal wall dilation in major arteries or veins that supply blood to the brain.
The veins can rapture causing massive bleeding inside the brain, which eventually leads to stroke if it is not caught and corrected in time.
Anoxia
A negligent medical practitioner may fail to notice that a child is deficient of oxygen, leading to the death of important brain cells.
Eventually, the child may succumb to brain shock, stroke, or cardiac arrest shortly after birth. You should contact an experienced medical malpractice lawyer Michigan who will make a medical malpractice lawsuit for wrongful death upon discovery of such medical negligence.
Subarachnoid Bleeding
Bleeding inside the brain is the leading cause of stroke, where the bleeding is induced by aneurysm or external impacts on the head.
A neurosurgical procedure is very delicate (especially if it is a brain tumor-removal surgery) and if an error occurs, bleeding may occur between the brain and the skull.
Insomnia and Amnesia
Mental health problems such as depression and anxiety are treated using antidepressant drugs, which may cause lack of sleep (insomnia). It is the responsibility of the medical practitioner to notify you about the side effects of such drugs.
Amnesia, on the other hand, may manifest as a result of invasive medical procedures, such as neurosurgeries. Additionally, amnesia may occur due to excess doses of anesthesia during surgery, or other curative drugs.
Generally, memory loss may be permanent or temporary depending on the cause and the extent of the brain injury you sustained.
Meningitis
The brain is covered with protective membranes that prevent external fluids contained in the skull from coming into contact with the brain.
However, an error during a neurosurgical procedure may cause inflammations or infections on the protective membranes (meningitis).
Symptoms of meningitis include fever, severe headaches, and vomiting—all which may start manifesting a few weeks after the surgical procedure.
The monetary settlement received after filing a medical malpractice claim will help you cover costs of treating meningitis.
Coma and Seizures
There have been cases of patients going into comas that extend for several weeks or years in severe cases. On the other hand, some patients experience seizures and periodic convulsions shortly after surgery.
In both cases, they are usually caused by brain injuries resulting from errors during a neurosurgical procedure.
Conclusion
As discussed above, brain injuries have catastrophic effects, and if left untreated, they can easily lead to death. Understanding the various effects of brain injuries will come in handy when filing for the appropriate medical malpractice lawsuit.
