In most personal injury cases involving an “mTBI” or “concussion”, there is no physical evidence of the injury. In other words, actual damage to tissue can not be seen and must be inferred from the mechanism of injury and observed symptoms. Most of the medical diagnoses for mTBI or concussion, according the WHO or DSM 5 or ICD 10, are based on observation of symptoms. No imaging on CT Scan or MRI scan is required. Legal cases about the issue are hard fought and the cases often succeed or fail depending on the ‘credibility’ of the plaintiff. This can be tough when the injured plaintiff is struggling because of the concussion.
Wouldn’t it be amazing if that all changed? If a simple blood test could “prove” a concussion. Well, maybe it will and Canadian doctors are at the forefront of this change. Medical doctors in Ontario have been studying whether a simple blood test which examines chemical changes that can now be measured might be able to show that a concussion has occurred. There research is new, but if you are interested here are a few places where you can read more about there studies ..
http://www.webmd.com/brain/
It just might change the legal landscape in years to come.
