After a head injury, it’s crucial to seek a full neurological assessment by a qualified medical professional, especially if you’ve suffered a loss of consciousness. In some cases, symptoms of a brain injury are vague or develop hours or even days after the initial trauma as bleeding and swelling inside the brain develop. Because brain injury symptoms may be overlooked or misinterpreted, imaging tests are an essential part of a neurologist’s diagnostic tools for obtaining a clear picture of the injury’s severity.

Not only are imaging scans crucial aspects of diagnosing and treating brain injuries, but they also become key evidence in a brain injury claim against a responsible party after a car accident, slip-and-fall case, or any other fault-based brain injury claim.

Why Brain Imaging Is Important In Chicago Brain Injury Claims

A brain injury victim may walk and talk normally during the minutes or even hours after the initial trauma, before bleeding and swelling inside the brain or between the brain and skull begin to damage cells and affect normal function. For this reason, medical imaging scans from CT or MRI are vital for medical treatment and potential litigation against the responsible party.

Brain scans serve the following important functions:

  • Ensuring a prompt, accurate diagnosis and the most effective early treatment
  • Revealing the severity of the brain injury as mild, moderate, or severe, helping to determine the future physical, cognitive, and financial effects of the injury
  • Providing evidence that the injury occurred in the accident or incident as stated in a brain injury claim against the responsible party

MRI scans are more thorough than CT scans and reveal more subtle injuries; however, both types of imaging results are important aspects of a brain injury case.

How MRI Scans are Used In Brain Injury Cases vs. CT Scans

Medical professionals describe brain injuries that result from outside forces like blunt-force trauma to the head or a violent shaking or jarring motion, as Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBIs) compared to brain injuries resulting from medical conditions like strokes or aneurysms. CT scans are often the first imaging tests performed in the emergency room after head trauma or a suspected brain injury. A CT scan reveals serious injuries requiring immediate medical treatment.

MRIs are often ordered later, sometimes days after the initial injury, when a head injury victim experiences symptoms such as headaches, vision changes, memory or concentration problems, or changes in mood or personality. An MRI’s more detailed imaging often reveals the more obscure signs of a brain injury deep inside the brain that may have been missed by an earlier CT scan or may not yet have developed.

MRI results showing subtle or developing brain injuries are often vital to prove that an injury victim suffered a TBI even though they were able to walk, talk, and function normally immediately after the accident. MRI images may be crucial to a diagnosis and litigation if an earlier CT scan in the emergency room did not show a brain injury.

Imaging Scans Become Key Medical Evidence In a Chicago Brain Injury Claim

When someone else’s careless, reckless, or wrongful actions cause you serious harm like a TBI, an experienced brain injury attorney in Chicago will use your CT and/or MRI scans along with your medical bills and employer statements as important evidence in your claim.

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