When you’ve experienced a bicycle crash and have a traumatic brain injury (TBI) as a result, it can be important to undergo neuropsychological testing to get a better understanding of your injury and your cognitive ability.
These tests tell clinicians how your brain works and helps them better understand your condition so that they can offer you the best diagnosis and treatment.
TBIs have a range of symptoms and severity, so each case is unique and each treatment journey will be different. While some people experience more physical symptoms like dizziness and headaches, others experience mood changes and behavioral symptoms, such as depression or heightened anxiety.
Neuropsychological testing, administered by a trained technician, can also be vital to help in TBI litigation after a bicycle crash because these are expert opinions of your medical and behavioral standing and what your future may look like in the long term.
How neuropsychological testing works
In these evaluations, neuropsychologists are trying to best understand mental function and cognition to make a diagnosis and establish a treatment plan. Neuropsychological testing is used for a variety of medical conditions, including Parkinson’s disease, learning disabilities, and even some brain tumors. For brain injuries, however, these types of tests can help establish severity and inform how a brain injury has impacted the patient’s psychological health.
First, the patient will answer questions about their health and psychological state. This will help guide the clinicians to the best methods of testing.
Tests may include:
- Memory tests
- Solving puzzles
- Verbal communication
- Motor skills
These tests show the clinical experts your cognitive capabilities and what may be missing. These are not pass/fail tests, as TBIs are often quite complex and passing or failing a test would not be beneficial for finding an appropriate treatment regimen. Instead, these tests are meant to establish a baseline and guide future care and treatment.
Neuropsychological testing can take hours, so patients should be prepared for that. There is no need to prepare in any specific way for a test. However, it’s best to try and get a good night’s sleep before, take medications as normal, and eat meals as normal.
After the testing is complete, the neuropsychologist will study the results and compare them to results of people of the same age and sometimes similar educational background. This will be able to tell them how you’re performing and whether you’re in a normal range of cognitive ability. When discussing results, the clinician may recommend specific forms of therapy or referrals to other providers to further investigate or treat your TBI.
Do you need neuropsychological testing?
TBIs can take days to develop to the point of noticeable symptoms for some people, and symptoms can last weeks, months, or sometimes indefinitely.
Even cases that are considered to be “mild” like a concussion tend to have chronic components for some people. Researchers estimate that approximately one in 60 people in the U.S. live with a TBI-related disability. There are a variety of variables that may impact the severity of chronic symptoms from a TBI, like how long consciousness was lost and which part of the brain sustained trauma. For some, there may be physical symptoms, cognitive symptoms, or both.
Even in mild cases, these chronic conditions can be life-altering. These lasting symptoms may include:
- Brain fog
- Changes in behavior
- Trouble with sleeping – either more than normal or less than normal
- Low energy or general fatigue
- Memory loss
- Trouble focusing
- Dizziness
- Ringing in the ears
Read More: How Age Affects Severity of a Brain Injury
This is only a short list and may differ depending on your specific injury, so it’s important to seek medical care early after your crash, keep track of symptoms and how they change or develop, and stay in touch with a clinician for check-ins and additional care.
Keeping notes about your condition and how it’s changing is one of the best things you can do for your care and for your legal case.
What does neuropsychological testing mean for litigation?
In personal injury litigation, it’s important to be able to prove the effects the crash has had on a person’s health, whether that’s emotional, cognitive, physical, or financial. Chances are that if you have a TBI, you probably experience all of these in some capacity.
Changes in cognitive ability, such as memory loss or brain fog, can lead to loss of earning capacity, especially in the long term if the symptoms persist. Neuropsychological testing helps better understand what a person’s cognitive capability is, and therefore, can inform what they’re capable of and how that relates to income, now and in the future, and health care bills and costs.
Read More: How Loss of Earning Capacity is Calculated After a TBI
Speak with a lawyer today
Bicycle crashes and the injuries that happen because somebody was negligent on the road can be frustrating. The legal process is nuanced and complex. Having an established and experienced team is helpful, especially when they know the ins and outs of insurance companies, their tactics, and how they impact cyclists.
Bay Area Bicycle Law staff are solely dedicated to the cases cyclists face. Our staff always ensures that clients are a part of the discussion and process. We work to maximize the take-home settlement. We also do our part to advocate for cyclists in legislation and local bike coalitions. We take our pledge to our clients and the Bay Area cycling community seriously so that everybody can have a better experience on the road.
When you’re injured and facing an uncertain future because of a bike crash, call Bay Area Bicycle Law for a free consultation. We’ll listen to the circumstances of your case and advise on the next steps forward. Get in touch by email or by calling (415) 466-8717.