Illinois Workers' Compensation for Traumatic Brain Injuries
by
Matthew Willens on Jun. 01, 2015
Employment Workers' Compensation Accident & Injury Accident & Injury Personal Injury
Summary: A work-related traumatic brain injury may leave an employee permanently disabled, causing financial and emotional distress.
The workers' compensation system safeguards the rights of employees who get injured at the workplace. It provides medical benefits and permanent and temporary disability benefits to those workers who are injured in the course and scope of work. One of the most serious types of injuries covered under the workers' compensation system are traumatic brain injuries. Most work-related traumatic brain injuries are serious and may render an injured worker permanently disabled. Workers who suffer traumatic brain injuries often require lifelong medical care and rehabilitation.
Common Causes of Work-Related Traumatic Brain Injuries
- automobile accidents
- contact with toxic materials
- fall from a ladder or scaffold
- slips and falls
Symptoms of Traumatic Brain Injury
The symptoms of traumatic brain injury depend on the severity of the injury. While mild injuries may present some minor symptoms such as headaches, a more serious injury can render a worker permanently disabled. Some common symptoms of less severe brain injury include:
- migraine
- dizziness
- disorientation
- buzzing sounds
- blurry vision
- unsteadiness
- impaired taste buds
- fatigue or weariness
- mood and personality changes
- changes in sleeping patterns
- memory loss
- inattention and distraction
A more serious traumatic brain injury may present debilitating symptoms including:
- chronic migraine that worsens over time
- persistent nausea
- muscle spasms
- loss of sensation in extremities
- garbled speech
- dilated pupils
- disorientation and restlessness
- loss of dexterity
Lifetime Consequences
Even after receiving medical treatment, a patient may still experience problems that last a lifetime. The injured worker may have psychological problems such as memory, cognitive, and logic problems, sensory impairment, and may lose the sense of touch, taste, smell, or sight. A person who has suffered a traumatic brain injury may face long-term communication problems including comprehension and verbal communication problems. Other long-term problems may include mobility problems, and mental and behavioural issues such as anxiety, personality changes, hostility, and aggressiveness. More serious cases of traumatic brain injury may cause convulsions and may lead to Parkinson’s disease as well.
Some workers who suffer a severe traumatic brain injury go into an unnatural state of consciousness. Such patients need long term in-patient care. The various states of unnatural consciousness that can result from a traumatic brain injury include coma, constant vegetative state, minimally conscious state, and even brain death.
Illinois Workers' Compensation Benefits
If you or someone close to you has suffered a work-related traumatic brain injury, it is essential to receive the best medical care and wage loss benefits for as long as you cannot return to work. If you are facing any difficulty in getting the benefits you deserve, call a workers' compensation attorney Matt Willens from The Willens Law Offices for help.