Diffuse Axonal Injury – Brain Injury Law Firm

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Thank you for checking out this short video on Diffuse Axonal Injury which is a severe form of traumatic brain injury or TBI. Passen & Powell is a brain injury law firm based in Chicago, Illinois.

We represent victims in auto accidents that suffer brain damage and other catastrophic injuries.

Diffuse Axonal Injuries

“Diffuse Axonal Injury,” is a severe form of traumatic brain injury, which primarily affects white matter tracts – or bundles of axons – in the brain.

Recent research suggests that 40-50% of TBIs requiring hospital admission will have some degree of Diffuse Axonal Injury.

The most common cause of DAI is high-speed motor vehicle collisions – including tractor-trailers, motorcycles, and other vehicles. That’s where we typically see clients with this type of brain injury.
In fact, medical researchers believe that a component of DAI is present in all motor vehicle crashes where the patient has lost consciousness.

The mechanism of injury typically involves an accelerating and decelerating motion that causes shearing – or tearing of nerve fibers – in the white matter tracts of the brain, which disrupts the brain’s normal communication and chemical processes.

For example, in a violent car crash a diffuse axonal injury may occur because the unmoving brain lags behind the movement of the skull, causing nerve structures to tear, resulting in microscopic brain damage at the junction of the white and gray matter in the brain.

Because most of the damage from DAI is microscopic and not seen on typical radiology, CT and MRI scans taken initially after injury are usually normal.

Indeed, definitive diagnosis of diffuse axonal injury can only be established on autopsy based on the pathologic examination of brain tissue.

However, DAI may be seen on more sensitive neuroimaging, such as Diffuse Tensor Imaging.
Also, there are no laboratory tests for the diagnosis of DAI, however current research in this area seems promising.

In the clinical setting, a diagnosis of DAI is made based on a combination of clinical signs and symptoms, radiographic findings, and an understanding of the mechanism of head trauma.
Patients with severe DAI may lose consciousness as a result of the head trauma, and may remain in a persistent vegetative state.

However, someone with a mild diffuse axonal injury may have symptoms that mirror post-concussive disorder, including:
• Headache
• Dizziness
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Fatigue

Diffuse axonal injury can cause a range of neurological deficits that affect a person’s physical, cognitive, and emotional well-being.

For most patients and families, there are permanent changes in quality of life, productivity, and social integration.

There are various medical specialties who may be able to help, including neurosurgery, neurology, neuropsychology, and rehabilitative medicine.

However, after a certain period of recovery – usually 1 to 2 years, according to the medical literature – they symptoms are usually permanent.

There is then the additional physical and emotional challenge of patients and their families accepting their condition as the “new normal.”

Our attorneys at Passen & Powell have a deep understanding and appreciation of the sophisticated, as well as the subtle issues involved in representing clients with brain injuries, including diffuse axonal injuries.

We would welcome the opportunity to discuss a potential case involving a brain injury caused by the negligence of another.