Many people in Pennsylvania incur brain injuries each year that can quickly worsen while remaining unnoticed by victims and their physicians. One particular type with potentially devastating effects most often affects people in older age groups and can arise from an injury as seemingly minor as a bump against a wooden beam.
Subdural hematomas result when the veins connecting the brain’s surface to the dura mater, a membrane attaching the human brain to the skull, are damaged. Blood can pool inside a person’s head, pressing the nearest part of the brain inward. Symptoms that begin as headaches and impaired decision making from brain cell irritation can lead to greater harm and even death when the blood is left to coagulate over months, further compressing and damaging the brain.
As people age, brain matter will shrink and pull further from the dura mater, leaving the blood vessels strained and more vulnerable to damage. Individuals who may be feeling issues with balance, limb weakness or strange and unwanted thought processes are advised to see a doctor as soon as they are able.
Some individuals may suffer brain trauma such as subdural hematomas due to unsafe conditions created by other parties. In many cases, brain injury sufferers may experience difficulty piecing together the events that led to their trauma. For instance, a person who slips and falls on a wet floor at a retail establishment may have an impaired memory surrounding the event which may complicate efforts to reach a settlement with the business. An attorney may be able to help accurately reconstruct the accident that led to a client’s condition with the advice of physicians and forensics experts.