Individuals in Tennessee who have suffered from a traumatic brain injury may have brains that age more rapidly than those that are uninjured. A study that appeared in the "Annals of Neurology" in April suggested that this premature aging may be one effect of a brain injury.
The study examined 99 people who had persistent neurological problems following a brain injury that happened anywhere from one month to 46 years prior to the scan. Researchers compared the scans to brain scans of healthy individuals and found structural changes in the injured brains that were similar to the changes caused by aging. According to the researchers, the injured brains appeared on average to be five years older than they were.
Researchers said that individuals with brain injuries were more likely to suffer from diseases such as dementia. The computer model used in the study might be of further use in identifying which injured individuals might develop those diseases.
An individual suffering from brain damage as the result of a head injury may wish to consult an attorney. Such an injury may require long-term or lifelong treatment and rehabilitation. Expenses may be high, and the individual may be unable to return to their employment. In such a case, if another party is responsible for the situation that led to the brain injury, there may be grounds for a lawsuit.
For example, the individual may have been in an automobile accident caused by a driver who was not paying attention and swerved into their lane. The individual may have hit their head in the accident. Even if there is no criminal case against the driver, the driver could still be found responsible in a civil suit. Other types of accidents as well as birth injuries may result in damage to the brain that could lead to a successful lawsuit.