Pennsylvania Diffuse Axonal Injury Attorneys

Diffuse axonal injury or 'DAI' is defined as the shearing (tearing) of the brain's long connecting nerve fibers (axons) that can occur with severe brain injury. The sudden impact of the body colliding with another object (such as a car or baseball bat) may cause the very delicate tissue in the brain to shear or tear apart. This does not directly destroy brain tissue, as a penetrating injury from a bullet might do, but instead destroys the neural pathways through which brain cells communicate with one another. Without this ability to communicate, even healthy brain cells can no longer perform the tasks they are designed to. And since this condition is spread across the brain, instead of localized, it affects many different types of functions. In traumatic brain injuries it is not unusual for direct brain damage and DAI to both occur.

Some of the most common causes of Diffuse axonal injury include, but are not limited to:

• car accidents, especially those traumatic accidents involving high speeds.
• contact injuries that may occur during sports
• trumatic shaking of an individual, especially a baby. (also known as Shaken Baby Syndrome)

Diffuse axonal injuries are especially difficult for doctors to detect because the most serious symptoms are not immediately apparent. Damage to the axons of the brain is a direct result of chemical reactions that occur within the brain, so in many instances the symptoms are not apparent until after the time in which a patient is seen and diagnosed. Since DAI does not cause direct traumat to the brain itself, it is not always apparent from a CAT scan or MRI. For this and other reasons it is especially important for victims of DAI to be very vigilent about their care, advocating for their right to treatment as new symptoms occur or old ones persist.

DAI is an exceedingly damaging form of traumatic brain injury and it also happens to be the most common. In fact, almost half of all traumatic head trauma patients have DAI. While not a death sentence, dealing and coping with DAI, especially for the family's of the injured, can be extremely difficult; emotionally and financially. DAi has also been linked to comas and vegetative sates in traumatic brain injury patients. Treatment for the affliction is very often extremely time consuming and costly, in many cases prohibitively so. After being stablized, the patient can spend years rehabilitating their condition, regaining each function that was lost by the damage ot the brain.

Cherry Fieger & Marciano, LLP has experience representing brain injury patients in Pennsylvania. If someone you love has suffered from DAI or another form traumatic brain injury and you believe the cause of the injury was another party's negligence, you may be able to seek compensation for your damages in a court of law. Contact the Philadelphia diffuse axonal injury attorneys at Cherry Fieger & Marciano, LLP today for a free in-home consultation of your case.