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Citation |
Hannon P. J. Forensic Biomech. 2018; 9(1): e112. |
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Copyright |
(Copyright © 2018, The author(s), Publisher OMICS Publishing Group) |
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DOI |
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PMID |
unavailable |
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Abstract |
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) can be a very debilitating injury with several mechanisms of injury including linear acceleration, angular acceleration, energy wave propagation and penetration. All TBI mechanisms result in some degree of upper central nervous system strain and/or damage/destruction. Tolerance limits of the brain and brainstem are the challenge for biomechanics' experts, physicians and neuropsychologists. One issue important to the personal injury attorney is the magnitude of the load or force involved in a head strike. The question is whether the level of loading (e.g., angular acceleration, linear acceleration) was sufficient to produce brain injury. Defense and plaintiff 's attorneys need to differentiate the client with psychogenic disorders after alleged head trauma from the client with real organic brain injury due to a trauma event. This argument which is outside the academic expertise of the biomechanist/neuroscientist is expressed by Sheftell et al. who report that "In litigious cultures, when there can be active solicitation by attorneys of injury-related cases and patients being coached by attorneys, assessment of malingering may present a challenge even to experienced clinicians and neuropsychologists". "Malingering as a diagnosis should not be made by exclusion. Observation of tasks not able to be performed, performance on forced choice tests worse than chance, Cluster B personality disorders, prior work history, prior injury claims and excessive endorsement of symptoms may indicate feigning of symptoms"... Language: en |