A new study published in JAMA Psychiatry followed hundreds of thousands of traumatic brain injury patients in Sweden over four decades. The results were surprising. Even once traumatic brain injury victims recover from their injuries, they are more likely to die from suicide or accidents at an earlier age. In particular, moderate to severe traumatic brain injury patients were three times more likely to die prematurely than people without such injuries.
This research lends credibility to the belief that trauma to the brain can be deadly in ways that are not immediately apparent. This could result in physicians and psychiatrists monitoring traumatic brain injury survivors for depression and other types of behaviors long after they have recovered.
The data from the study focused on brain injuries involving skull fractures, internal bleeding and loss of consciousness for more than an hour. Yet the data also suggested that there were similar associations when people sustain concussions.
In particular, the data showed that the brain injury group had 574 deaths from various accidents and 522 deaths from suicides. The fatal accident rate of this traumatic brain injury group was 4x that of the control group, while they were 3x more likely to commit suicide.
What about mild brain injuries? Researchers conducted a separate analysis of 333,118 people who had sustained concussions and found that they were 2x as likely to die prematurely.
This new research has the potential to shake up how we view traumatic brain injuries. Presently, most of the focus is on short-term survival and recovery. Now, it seems that even once they survive and recover, traumatic brain injury victims are still not out of the woods.
If you or someone you love has sustained a traumatic brain injury in an accident, it is important to understand how your injury could affect your life—and your future. Since traumatic brain injury victims may be at an increased risk for psychiatric disorders, substance abuse, depression, and premature death, any compensation you receive should reflect these new findings.
Contact Seattle Personal Injury Attorneys
Traumatic brain injury victims are not alone–an experienced Seattle car accident attorney at Phillips Law Firm can help. If you are interested in learning more about your legal options, call us at 1-800-708-6000. Our Seattle personal injury lawsuit attorneys are waiting to assist you 24/7, offering a free case evaluation. Remember our no fee promise. If we do not recover anything for you, you do not owe us an attorney fee.
The personal injury lawyers at Phillips Law Firm have successfully represented injured individuals and their families in Seattle, Tacoma, Vancouver, Bellevue, Everett, Kent, Auburn, Renton, Federal Way, Bellingham, Marysville, Lakewood, Redmond, Shoreline, and throughout the State of Washington.