By Mark Favaloro, Virginia Traumatic Brain Injury Attorney

A new report reveals that college athletes may find it more difficult to learn after head injuries sustained on the field. Football and hockey players in particular have shown post-season declines in learning, the study shows.

Conducted at Virginia Tech, Dartmouth and Brown University, the study shows a connection between head injuries and academic performance in collegiate athletes. These athletes wore special helmets that measured impact of hits to the head for a season, and then were tested post-season for mental function. Shockingly, 24% of football and hockey players performed poorly on these tests. None of the athletes had a history of concussions.

This study shows just how dangerous impact can be on the human brain, even when proper safety equipment is utilized. Contact sports can be rough on young minds – the average athlete in this study took approximately 450 blows to the head each season.

Though this particular study only lasted for a short time and is not conclusive by any means, parents of young athletes should consider it food for thought. Imagine if your youngster begins playing a contact sport at 8 or 9. Ten years later, if they’re playing at a collegiate level, they’ll have had a decade of consistent blows to the head. Who knows just how much damage might have been caused, or how much of the ability to learn might have been lost?

Our experienced traumatic brain injury (TBI) attorneys noted recently how many years of concussions can take a toll on the brain. 

About the Editors: The VA-NC brain injury lawyers at Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton have experience handling traumatic brain injury and general head injury cases. Our head injury attorneys achieved the largest verdict in Virginia’s history for a brain-damaged client in 2000. The initial award of $46 million rose to $60 million with interest when an appeal was settled confidentially. Check out our other case results to see our track record of success in brain injury and other lawsuits. We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, Virginia (VA), along with an office in Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been listed among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008. They, along with fellow attorney Randy Appleton, have also been named Virginia Super Lawyers since 2010, an honor fewer than 5 percent of outstanding attorneys receive. To get more information about traumatic brain injury law and what to do after an accident, take a look at this free consumer guide written by a brain injury attorney who is licensed in VA and NC.

By Jim Lewis, Virginia Traumatic Brain Injury Attorney

The cause of an accident at the intersection of E. Water and 4th streets in Charlottesville, Virginia (VA), has yet to be determined, but the outcome was decidedly dire for one man. According to police reports, a scooter rider was thrown from his motor bike when he collided with an SUV and suffered life-threatening head and brain injuries when he landed on the pavement.

Apparently, the scooter rider’s helmet was not properly secured, and it came off at some point after the crash, leaving the man’s skull unprotected.

View Larger Map

Police could not immediately determine whether the SUV driver or scooter operator had the right of way. Regardless of who was at fault, drivers, motorcyclists, bicyclists and scooter riders can take two important lessons from the accident. The first is that anyone approaching or entering an intersection must watch for motor bikes. Two-wheelers can be difficult to see, especially for people behind the wheel of large vehicles like SUVs, vans and trucks. But “I didn’t even see them” is never an acceptable explanation or excuse for hitting and injuring a person on a motorcycle, bike or scooter.

The even more important lesson is that while helmets absolutely save lives and prevent injuries, the safety equipment only works if it is used properly. When putting on a bike helmet or a motorcycle helmet, make sure it fits tightly without causing discomfort and does not obscure your vision. Also snap the chin strap securely.

EJL

About the Editors: The VA-NC brain injury lawyers at Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton have experience handling traumatic brain injury and general head injury cases. Our head injury attorneys achieved the largest verdict in Virginia’s history for a brain-damaged client in 2000. The initial award of $46 million rose to $60 million with interest when an appeal was settled confidentially. Check out our other case results to see our track record of success in brain injury and other lawsuits. We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, Virginia (VA), along with an office in Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been listed among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008. They, along with fellow attorney Randy Appleton, have also been named Virginia Super Lawyers since 2010, an honor fewer than 5 percent of outstanding attorneys receive. To get more information about traumatic brain injury law and what to do after an accident, take a look at this free consumer guide written by a brain injury attorney who is licensed in VA and NC.

By Randy Appleton, West Virginia Brain Injury Attorney

A bike accident in Putnam County, West Virginia (WV) that sent an 11-year-old girl to a nearby hospital with injuries has brought charges of criminal neglect against the child’s father. According to police reports, a car collided with the girl as she was riding along heavily traveled Mount Vernon Road in the town of Teays Valley during the evening of March 22, 2012. The youngster was trapped under the car’s bumper and dragged several feet before the driver could stop.

The girl was not wearing a helmet, which is required safety equipment for any bicyclist younger than 15 years of age in West Virginia. While the child does seem to have been spared a brain injury, the high risk for that outcome and the fact that her parents were not supervising her at the time of the accident led police to file charges against the father.

View a larger map of where a car struck and injured an 11-year-old girl in Teays Valley, WV.

The driver who hit the bike rider and caused the girl significant bruising and scrapes was not cited for a traffic violation. That would not necessarily prevent the injured child’s parents from filing a personal injury claim, especially if signs of physical or mental disabilities persist or appear over time.

But what strikes me as the real story here, as an attorney who has represented both children and adults who have suffered traumatic brain injuries, is that any parent would allow a child to ride a bike while not wearing a helmet. Head protection is required by law because helmets absolutely save bicyclists’ lives. Regardless of the outcome of the criminal neglect case against this girl’s father, I see it as a very good sign that police take the West Virginia bike helmet requirement so seriously.

EJL

About the Editors: The VA-NC brain injury lawyers at Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton have experience handling traumatic brain injury and general head injury cases. Our head injury attorneys achieved the largest verdict in Virginia’s history for a brain-damaged client in 2000. The initial award of $46 million rose to $60 million with interest when an appeal was settled confidentially. Check out our other case results to see our track record of success in brain injury and other lawsuits. We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, Virginia (VA), along with an office in Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been listed among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008. They, along with fellow attorney Randy Appleton, have also been named Virginia Super Lawyers since 2010, an honor fewer than 5 percent of outstanding attorneys receive. To get more information about traumatic brain injury law and what to do after an accident, take a look at this free consumer guide written by a brain injury attorney who is licensed in VA and NC.

By Richard N. Shapiro, Virginia Brain Injury Attorney

Strapped into her booster seat, a young girl was violently crushed into the headrest of the car seat in front of her when a tractor-trailer rear-ended her parent’s car.  The impact caused a brain injury from which the child will never fully recover. Find out how our Virginia (VA) personal injury lawyers Randall E. Appleton and Jin Lewis helped the family receive a $21 million settlement to provide for the girl’s education and lifelong care.

Our firm also secured a $60 million award for a brain-injured gas station attendant hurt when a Norfolk Southern train derailed and crashed into the building where the man was working.  As experienced brain injury attorneys, we continue to fight for the rights of those who have been harmed.

CT

About the Editors: The VA-NC brain injury lawyers at Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton have experience handling traumatic brain injury and general head injury cases. Our head injury attorneys achieved the largest verdict in Virginia’s history for a brain-damaged client in 2000. The initial award of $46 million rose to $60 million with interest when an appeal was settled confidentially. Check out our other case results to see our track record of success in brain injury and other lawsuits. We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, Virginia (VA), along with an office in Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been listed among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008. They have also been named Virginia Super Lawyers since 2010, an honor fewer than 5 percent of outstanding attorneys receive. To get more information about traumatic brain injury law and what to do after an accident, take a look at this free consumer guide written by a brain injury attorney who is licensed in VA and NC.

By Richard Shapiro, Virginia Brain Injury Lawyer

A Sterling, Virginia (VA), man has sued a former Loudoun County deputy, claiming  the law enforcement official assaulted him and caused him to suffer a traumatic brain injury.  According to the complaint, the victim was struck in the head from behind by the deputy while standing with his hands above his head and speaking with another officer. The person who was struck then fell to the ground and lost consciousness. A dashboard camera in a police cruiser recorded video of the event, but no audio.

The victim claims the TBI produced memory loss and persistent migraine headaches. Many other symptoms could present themselves.  The brain is so complex that anyone who suffers an injury like this often needs months, years and perhaps a lifetime of treatment by a brain specialist.

Anyone who suffers a TBI at the hands of someone else would benefit greatly from speaking with an experienced Virginia brain injury lawyer. My experienced Virginia brain injury lawyer colleagues and I work hard on behalf of our clients to ensure that they receive appropriate compensation for their injuries.

MK

About the Editors: The VA-NC brain injury lawyers at Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton have experience handling traumatic brain injury and general head injury cases. Our head injury attorneys achieved the largest verdict in Virginia’s history for a brain-damaged client in 2000. The initial award of $46 million rose to $60 million with interest when an appeal was settled confidentially. Check out our other case results to see our track record of success in brain injury and other lawsuits. We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, Virginia (VA), along with an office in Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been listed among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008. They, along with fellow attorney John M. Cooper, have also been named Virginia Super Lawyers since 2010, an honor fewer than 5 percent of outstanding attorneys receive. To get more information about traumatic brain injury law and what to do after an accident, take a look at this free consumer guide written by a brain injury attorney who is licensed in VA and NC.

By Rick Shapiro, Traumatic Brain Injury Attorney in Virginia

A man who became permanently disabled after falling backwards off a Segway during a company-sponsored demonstration of the two-wheeled motorized scooter and sustaining a traumatic brain injury has won a $10 million jury award in Connecticut (CT). Evidence presented at trial showed that Segway representatives allowed the man to ride the vehicle through an obstacle course while blindfolded and without wearing a helmet. According to the brain injured man’s attorneys, Robert B. Adelman and Neil Sutton, the company reps brought no helmets to the demonstration at all.

As this clip from The Ellen DeGeneres Show indicates, crashing and falling from a Segway is surprisingly easy:

The talk show host suffered no injuries, but the man in this case sustained a TBI and brain damage that forced him to drop out of college just one year shy of earning his bachelor’s degree. During the trial, the brain damaged man’s lawyers emphasized the neglect and recklessness Segway reps showed in not providing helmets and the loss of future earnings and quality of life for their client, who now works as a low-paid handyman.

As a Virginia (VA) personal injury attorney whose firm often represents traumatic brain injury victims, I have seen firsthand how a closed head injury can adversely affect a person for a lifetime. I also know that no person on a motorized scooter should ever ride without a helmet, let alone be allowed by a responsible party like a Segway representative to operate the vehicle while not having his or her head protected. No one should ever suffer a TBI due to another person’s negligence.

EJL

About the Editors: The VA-NC brain injury lawyers at Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton have experience handling traumatic brain injury and general head injury cases. Our head injury attorneys achieved the largest verdict in Virginia’s history for a brain-damaged client in 2000. The initial award of $46 million rose to $60 million with interest when an appeal was settled confidentially. Check out our other case results to see our track record of success in brain injury and other lawsuits. We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, Virginia (VA), along with an office in Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been listed among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008. They have also been named Virginia Super Lawyers since 2010, an honor fewer than 5 percent of outstanding attorneys receive. To get more information about traumatic brain injury law and what to do after an accident, take a look at this free consumer guide written by a brain injury attorney who is licensed in VA and NC.

By Randy Appleton, Brain Injury Victims’ Attorney in Virginia

An attorney with the Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton law firm has published an article discussing how important it is for traumatic brain injury victims to hire a law firm whose lawyers have experience handling serious brain injury cases. To learn more, take a look at “Brain Injury Specialists in Virginia Beach Understand How to Handle TBI Claims.”

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About the Editors: The VA-NC brain injury lawyers at Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton have experience handling traumatic brain injury and general head injury cases. Our head injury attorneys achieved the largest verdict in Virginia’s history for a brain-damaged client in 2000. The initial award of $46 million rose to $60 million with interest when an appeal was settled confidentially. Check out our other case results to see our track record of success in brain injury and other lawsuits. We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, Virginia (VA), along with an office in Elizabeth City, North Carolina (NC). Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been listed among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008. They, along with fellow attorney John M. Cooper, have also been named Virginia Super Lawyers since 2010, an honor fewer than 5 percent of outstanding attorneys receive. To get more information about traumatic brain injury law and what to do after an accident, take a look at this free consumer guide written by a brain injury attorney who is licensed in VA and NC.

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By Jim Lewis, Birth and Brain Injury Attorney in Virginia

A Michigan teenager whose cerebral palsy, quadriplegia and other permanent disabilities appear to have been caused by the negligence of the doctor who delivered her at William Beaumont Hospital in Oakland County, MI, in 1996 has won a medical malpractice lawsuit against the health care facility and the obstetrician. The girl, who is now 15, is set to receive $144 million, which will come down to $130 million after legal fees and costs are paid.

Attorney Geoffrey Fieger told WXYX Action News 7 that the amount awarded represents no more than the bare minimum of lifelong care for the girl “at $12 an hour, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for 77 years into future.”

Key to the successful resolution for the plaintiff in this medical negligence/birth injury case was showing that the doctor and administrators at the hospital were negligent in not recognizing and responding to risks to the newborn from a complicated pregnancy and delivery. The girl’s mother had developed gestational diabetes, and the girl’s birth weight was more than 10 pounds. Both problems indicated a caesarean section was safer than a vaginal delivery, but the c-section was never ordered nor performed.

Cerebral palsy often results from a mistake or negligence by the doctor or nurses attending a birth. As a medical malpractice lawyer based in Virginia (VA) who has represented several children and families whose lives have been made almost unimaginably difficult by preventable birth and brain injuries, I know that the pressures and costs of providing lifelong care for disabled kids and adults are unsupportable without compensation from the health care providers and facilities that caused the injuries.

I wish the Michigan teen and her family well and hope their burdens are now eased.

EJL

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton is a law firm whose attorneys focus on injury and accident law and have experience handling traumatic brain injury and general head injury cases. Check out our case results to see for yourself. Our primary office is in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA). Our attorneys achieved the largest verdict in Virginia’s history for a brain-damaged client in 2000. The initial award of $46 million rose to $60 million with interest when an appeal was settled confidentially. Rick Shapiro and James Lewis were included in the 2011 issue of Best Lawyers in America. They, along with fellow attorney John M. Cooper, were also named 2011 Virginia Super Lawyers for Personal Injury Law, an honor which fewer than 5 percent of outstanding lawyers receive. Our injury lawyers also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube. Further, our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard blogs as pro bono public information services. While not every brain injury case meets our criteria, if you or a loved one is thinking about taking legal action against a possibly at-fault person or company that caused your injury, call our office at (800) 752-0042 for a free consultation. If you cannot get through due to high call volume, be sure to leave a voicemail. We will return your call.

By Rick Shapiro, Traumatic Brain Injury Attorney in Virginia

By John Cooper, Virginia Brain Injury Victim’s Attorney

As a parent of high school and middle school athletes and a personal injury attorney in Virginia (VA) who has represented numerous clients who have had their lives shattered by head traumas, I was equally encouraged and concerned when I read that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had discovered a 60 percent increase of emergency room visits for concussions in children between 2001 and 2009.

According to the CDC, 248,418 children were treated at ERs for concussions — also known as mild traumatic brain injuries, or mTBIs — during 2009. That number was up from 153,375 in 2001. A majority of the concussions were caused by bicycle accidents, though football injuries constituted the main cause for teen boys and soccer was a primary concussion cause for teen girls.

It is good to see so many parents and coaches no longer treating head injuries as just a child or teenager getting his or her bell rung. As my law firm colleagues and I have stressed repeatedly, even a seemingly minor blow to the head can have negative, lifelong effects on memory, concentration, emotional control and overall health. Immediate, effective and follow-up care are essential to helping any person of any age recover from a concussion.

I do remain concerned, though, because of the shockingly large numbers of youngsters — CDC considers the ages from birth to 19 years childhood and adolescence — who sustain mTBIs each year. Worse,  an athletic brain injury expert interviewed by the New York Times told the newspaper that as few as 1 in 7 concussions in children who play high-impact sports such as football and hockey ever get diagnosed and treated.

But, again, the growing recognition of the potential for and seriousness of mTBIs in children is a good thing. Concerted efforts are being made to improve helmets for everything from bicycling and skiing to football, and Virginia, North Carolina (NC) and 30 other states have enacted laws and regulations requiring education on athletes and concussions, as well as keeping kids out of competition until they are medically cleared.

A good place for parents, coaches and student athletes themselves to start learning about how to prevent and treat concussions is by viewing this free online video seminar from the CDC: Heads Up: Concussions in Youth Sports.

EJL

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton is a law firm whose attorneys focus on injury and accident law and have experience handling traumatic brain injury and general head injury cases. Check out our case results to see for yourself. Our primary office is in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA). Our attorneys achieved the largest verdict in Virginia’s history for a brain-damaged client in 2000. The initial award of $46 million rose to $60 million with interest when an appeal was settled confidentially. Rick Shapiro and James Lewis were included in the 2011 issue of Best Lawyers in America. They, along with fellow attorney John M. Cooper, were also named 2011 Virginia Super Lawyers for Personal Injury Law, an honor which fewer than 5 percent of outstanding lawyers receive. Our injury lawyers also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube. Further, our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard blogs as pro bono public information services. While not every brain injury case meets our criteria, if you or a loved one is thinking about taking legal action against a possibly at-fault person or company that caused your injury, call our office at (800) 752-0042 for a free consultation. If you cannot get through due to high call volume, be sure to leave a voicemail. We will return your call.