A victim of a traumatic brain injury or closed head injury often has a team of medical specialists to assist  in the recovery and rehabilitation.  Each member of the team has a different background, specialty, and purpose and it is the teamwork between them all that works best for the patient.

A neuropsychologist is not a physician in the strictest sense, considering that he is essentially a psychologist specializing in treating functional disorders of the brain as well as behavioral malfunctioning.

You cannot expect a neuropsychologist to order for the routine tests often demanded by other physicians like EEGs, MRIs, or CT scans. On the contrary a neuropsychologist prefers to conduct a series of written examinations followed by personal interviews with the brain-injured victim. This series of tests is often referred to as a testing ‘battery’.

What is the purpose of such a testing battery?   The tests are done with the sole purpose of identifying some of the critical functional aspects of the brain. This includes memory capacity both short and long term, abstract reasoning skills, attention span, ability to focus, executive functioning capacity, motor skills and other emotional and cognitive traits. Based on the results of such tests along with other medical information, the neuropsychologist is then in a position to comment regarding the severity of the brain injury, its most viable treatment procedure and also predict what the future holds for the patient.

Opinions and viewpoints of the neuropsychologist are given serious cognizance by the jury in case there is a lawsuit filed by the victim of a traumatic brain injury or his family. He is treated as an authority when it is a matter of establishing the severity of the brain injury. The test results often go a long way to ratify the permanence of the injury and confirm the victim’s inability to work ever in his life.

A neuropsychologist often doubles up as a counselor and a therapist to bring back the brain-injured patient as close  to his pre-injury state.  They often also often provide group counseling sessions and recommend other forms of important rehabilitation.  They are an essential part of the brain injury treatment and recovery team.

Importance of the neurologist in the management of traumatic brain injuries

Doctors who treat a victim of closed brain injury usually comprise of several specialties, each one contributing his own perspectives and evaluations to the overall treatment regimen. Among others, the neurologist plays a key role in the treatment of traumatic brain injuries.

Who is a neurologist and what role does he play in the treating a brain-injured patient? A neurologist is a physician (MD or DO) specializing in treating ailments affecting the brain and the central nervous system. A neurological problem can have various physical manifestations including structural abnormalities or malfunctioning of specific zones within the entire nervous system of the body.

The neurologists’ job is to diagnose and treat such conditions, while physicians like psychiatrists and neuropsychologists concentrate on rectifying other injury-related problems like cognitive and mental disorders. However none of these specialties work in isolation. They work as a team.

After a traumatic brain injury, no treatment can start without the knowledge of the precise state of the victim’s nervous system. This is where a neurologist plays a critical role. He performs a comprehensive test to provide important information. The scope of his examination include the 12 important nerves of the head and neck, reflex action, sense of balance and muscle coordination, muscle strength and of course his mental and emotional state.

From his test results the treating doctors can access vital information about the victim’s state of consciousness, response to surroundings, general behavioral traits, orientation, attention span and memory.

There are a number of diagnostic tests which the neurologist performs including lumbar puncture, electroencephalography (EEG), electromyography/nerve conduction velocity (EMG/NCV) to identify the precise nature and severity of the brain injury.

A neurologist may at times refer  the victim of a traumatic brain injury to a neuropsychologist depending on the results of diagnostic tests like EEG, EMG, CT and MRI. He does this mainly to seek the opinion of the neuropsychologist as to which areas of the brain are damaged and which is still untouched by the trauma. This critical assessment of the situation would allow him to conclude how the trauma has impacted the victim’s thought procedure and outward behavior.

Diagnosis, treatment and recovery of victims of other types of problems related to brain injuries including seizures are also undertaken by a neurologist.

Closed head injury and SPECT scan testing

A victim of a closed head injury or a traumatic brain injury is not only treated by a host of physicians belonging to various specialties, but the victim also has to undergo a series of tests to help with the diagnosis and treatment. One such compulsory testing is the SPECT scan test (Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography, a kind of nuclear imaging test displaying the pattern of blood flow to the various tissues and organs of the brain).

Depending on the severity of the consequences, such accident compensations can run into thousands.

Essentially, the SPECT scan test involves the deployment of two technologies – the computed tomography (CT) and the use of a radioactive material called the tracer. It is the tracer which helps the physician to track the blood flow to tissues and organs.

How is this test done? It starts with an injection of a chemical to the victim of a closed brain injury. This special chemical disperses gamma rays which the scanner can easily detect. In a way this test is not the same as a PET scan where the chemical is absorbed by the blood and the tissues. In the SPECT scan, the chemical remains in the blood stream helping to track the blood flow within the body. This type of scan is also less expensive and more easily available than even the high resolution PET scan.

A computer interprets the information gathered from the gamma arrays into the 2-dimensional images, which subsequently takes the form of 3-D images of the brain.

Considered to be more appropriate and sensitive than MRI or CT scans, the SPECT scan enables in the detection of speed of blood flow through arteries and veins within the injured brain. This type of scan is also frequently done for any evaluation study of medically uncontrolled seizures that demand surgical intervention. In such situations the SPECT scan provides the flexibility of scanning the brain in between (interictal) as well as during a seizure (ictal). This helps to identify the blood flow to areas of the brain from where the seizures begin.

An important part of every patient’s traumatic brain injury recovery “team” is the Case Manager.   A case manager usually has a nursing background or is a counselor experienced with vocational rehabilitation programs.

A case manager is particularly helpful when the condition is a traumatic brain injury or a severe injury to the spinal cord. Here are some responsibilities of a case manager:

• Coordinating the overall treatment with multiple medical specialties including doctors and clinics.
• Locating the best doctors according to the victims’ specific needs.
• Scheduling doctors’ visits.
• Assistance with home renovation after the victim is released from the hospital, including building of ramps, procuring hospital beds, etc.
• Assisting the victim during recovery phase. Helping him to procure and use medical appliances like wheelchair, etc.
• Moderating discussions between the victim, his family and the health insurance company.
• Helping with all other services related to the victim’s post-hospitalization care, support, recovery and rehabilitation.

Under the Michigan No-Fault laws and the car insurance policy, a victim is entitled unlimited services from a case manager, except that the case management services that the victim is entitled to, must be relevant to his needs for recovery and rehabilitation.

It is common for the No-Fault insurance company to insist on a case manager of their choice. Since there are chances of conflict of interest, we recommend you to disregard this request. In fact, such case managers can jeopardize the chances of the victim getting complete medical treatment as well as other benefits.

For your information, the victim has every right to choose his own case manager instead of depending on the services of the case manager provided by the insurance company, to take care of his needs; like other medical benefits, the case manager can render services for as long as required.

Many times, the insurance companies  refuse to pay for these benefits. In case this happens to you, you have no other choice but to make a legal appeal so that the company pays for the services.  It is here that the Michigan car accident lawyers play a big role in getting your benefits paid.

Of all the accidents that cause traumatic brain injuries, those involving motorcycles are perhaps the most common.   The closed head injuries are usually serious, despite the biker wearing helmet and the rider has a higher risk of sustaining head injuries.   The worst part is that most of these injuries are caused by the negligence or callousness of some irresponsible person on the road.

While the surviving victim and his family get busy with the diagnosis and treatment of the condition, they usually forget to contact personal injury lawyers, who can provide the necessary help to the victim and his family to file claims for the damages, in case the accident has been caused due to another person’s negligence.

Any type of closed brain injury can cause irreparable damage to the life of the victim. Over and above the physical and emotional trauma which the victim suffers, the accident can impair him for life; break his family, marriage and relationships. It may cost him his job, leaving him unemployable for a considerable length of time.

The recovery of the victim of a traumatic motorcycle brain injury can take a long time. It involves huge expenses especially considering the long term care and medication costs involved for complete recovery.  The brain is not a simple organ and any damage sustained during a closed brain injury usually takes a long time to diagnose and treat.

Motorcycle accident victims can often obtain Michigan No-Fault Insurance Benefits to pay for medical expenses, lost wages, and other benefits for injuries suffered in the accident.  Many of these benefits are available for life.  In cases involving brain injuries, these benefits can pay for the necessary rehabilitation related to the recovery from the accident.

Today there are state-of-the-art treatment modules available which coach the surviving victim of a traumatic brain injury how to improve his social behavioral skills, including ways to interpret a seemingly complicated piece of communication. Several studies done on the subject report marked improvement in the social behavioral skills of victims of closed brain injury caused by motorcycle accidents.