According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), head injuries affect millions of Americans each year and cost billions of dollars in medical care and lost productivity. Even a simple concussion can result in missed work, long-term health concerns, and financial concerns. In fact, on average in the United States:
- 52,000 people die from a fatal head injury.
- 275,000 people are hospitalized due to a serious head injury.
- 1.36 million people visit the emergency room due to a head injury.
A head injury or traumatic brain injury (TBI) sustained at work can be even more stressful than a head injury under other circumstances: Injury victims not only have to worry about the cause and fault of their accident, they also have to worry about recovery and returning to their job to support themselves and their families.
At Pain Stop MD, we specialize in helping victims of on-the-job injuries get the medical services they need, from the correct diagnosis to the right treatment. With a board-certified physician on staff at our clinic, we offer a full range of medical services and can answer many of your questions about workers’ compensation claims and federal employee work-related injuries.
Located in Dallas and serving the surrounding areas of Ennis, Denton, and Waco, we help the following workers:
- Postal workers
- Construction workers
- Office workers and clerks
- Jail workers and prison workers
- TSA employees
- Registered nurses
- Forest service employees
- Compliance officers
We offer comprehensive consultations with a doctor who specializes in pain management. To schedule a consultation, or simply to ask a question or talk to a medical professional, please call us today.
Types Of Traumatic Brain Injuries
Brain injuries are one of the most serious types of injuries that the body can endure because it affects the central nervous system of the body: The organ that controls all other organs. Even the most mild forms of brain injuries can have serious, lasting consequences, while the most serious brain injuries can result in paralysis, coma, and death. Below, let’s take a look at some of the common types of brain injury:
- Concussions. Concussions are the most common type of brain injury, with more than four million concussions reported in the United States each year. But just because they are the most mild and common form of brain injury does not mean that they are not serious. In fact, even a concussion that does not lead to loss of consciousness can affect a person’s mood, behavior, memory, vision, health, and quality of life over the long term. The most common causes of concussions for workers are falls, traffic accidents, falling objects, and violence in the workplace.
- Contusions. A cerebral contusion is a bruise and bleeding in the brain due to a violent impact, such as a fall, car accident, or collision, or other trauma. Large contusions may not only have a serious affect on the function of the brain, they may need to be surgically removed to promote recovery. Contusions occur in twenty to thirty percent of head injury cases and can occur both at the site of impact as well as on the opposite side of the head, where the brain strikes the skull due to the force of the impact. Depending on the location of the contusion, symptoms can include memory loss, coordination problems, speech problems, behavioral issues, numbness, and headaches.
- Diffuse axonal injuries. This is a serious traumatic brain injury that occurs when rotational forces affect the head, causing brain tissue to tear. The two most common causes of diffuse axonal injuries are Shaken Baby Syndrome and car accidents. This serious head injury causes the release of brain chemicals in addition to general damage to brain nerve tissue, which are two issues that result in a slew of emotional, behavioral, motor, and memory issues for the patient as he or she recovers. Mild cases of diffuse axonal injuries can lead to temporary damage and temporary health issues, while severe cases result in permanent brain damage, coma, or death.
- Penetration injuries. While rare, penetration head injuries are also among the most serious. They occur when trauma results from an object penetrating the skull and brain, injuring nerve tissue and causing dangerous swelling. Penetration injuries can take place during a high-speed car accident, during a construction/industrial accident, or during an assault with a knife or firearm. As one might guess, these injuries need immediate medical attention and surgery, and almost always result in long-term health consequences that involve severe disability and require extensive rehabilitation.
- Anoxia. Anoxic brain injuries take place when the brain does not receive enough oxygen to function. These accidents become more serious the longer that a injury victim does not receive oxygen: More than a few minutes without oxygen results in coma and death. For workers, the most common causes of anoxic brain injuries include water accidents and strangling accidents.
Symptoms Of A Head Injury
The symptoms of a traumatic brain injury vary wildly depending on the severity of an accident. For example, serious or severe brain injuries will likely involve loss of consciousness, but mild brain injuries may not. Here are some of the questions to ask after an accident that affects a person’s head:
- Is he or she having difficulting with their cognitive functioning? For example, is he or she having trouble with memory, thinking, speaking, or understanding?
- Is he or she behaving oddly? Is he or she feeling anger, having outburst, having trouble with irritability, or having trouble with impulsiveness or lack or restraint?
- Is he or she moving oddly? Is he or she having issues with coordination, balance, dizziness, fainting, lightheadedness, or movement?
- How does he or she feel? Is he or she experiencing mood swings, sudden bouts of anger, depression, loneliness, or anxiety?
- How does he or she sound? Is he or she sounding confused, slurring speech, or having trouble finding the right words?
- How are his or her senses? How is the person’s vision, sense of feeling, sense of smell, and hearing? Do they have ringing in the ears, loss of smell, or blurred vision?
- Are there any other worrisome symptoms? Has the person suffer a seizure, or have they experienced stiff muscles, bleeding from the ears, or a fractured skull?
The signs and symptoms of a traumatic brain injury should be taken extremely seriously. Any of the above symptoms following a blow to the head are serious enough that the injury victim should immediately seek medical help at an emergency room. Seeking a doctor right away can help prevent brain damage from severe issues, like bleeding on the brain or brain swelling, and seeking treatment for mild head injuries can help speed your recovery.
Injured Workers: How We Can Help
At Pain Stop MD, we understand what injured workers have been through and what injured workers need. We know that many people who have been in work-related accidents haven’t gotten the right medical attention they need, have only seen company doctors, and have a great need for a second opinion and a working plan to get them healthy again. We do not give up on patients suffering from chronic pain, and we are dedicated to aiding your recovery whether it involves short-term or long-term care.
We help all injured workers in the Dallas area, including:
- Those with Department of Labor Office of Workers’ Compensation Program (OWCP) claims.
- Those with Texas Workers’ Compensation claims.
Specializing in injured workers means that you not only get the medical care you need, from a doctor who is highly familiar with on-the-job accidents, but you also get the information you need – from diagnostic test results to medical records, to claims processing information. We provide a path back to help while illuminating your path to completing your workers’ compensation claim.
Our Services For Head Injury Patients
Because traumatic brain injuries can affect so many parts of the body (and so many parts of a person’s daily life), it is of the utmost importance that head injuries are very carefully evaluated and then treated with close oversight, compassion, and care. At Pain Stop MD, we provide TBI patients with:
- Medical evaluations.
- Diagnostic testing.
- Acute care.
- Medications and prescriptions.
- Pain management.
- Physical therapy.
- Physiotherapy.
- Surgery.
This is not a comprehensive list of our medical services – call our office today to find out more about how we can help you and how you can schedule an initial evaluation.
Meet Your Doctor Today At Pain Stop MD
We understand that many workers with head injuries have endured not only a painful and overwhelming time, but have also endured frustrating and stressful experiences at medical facilities while trying to heal. We want to help you get better, from pinpointing exactly what happened to finding the treatments that work. To schedule an appointment with our doctor, or to learn more about our clinic, please call us today.
Don’t continue to hurt. Don’t continue to live with the consequences of your head injury. Talk to someone who can help.