Many different types of accidents can cause your brain to collide with your skull. When your brain and skull collide with enough force, the relatively soft matter that makes up your brain may bruise. These bruises, or contusions, can cause severe or life-threatening injuries known as coup, contrecoup, and coup-contrecoup injuries.
Coup, Contrecoup, and Coup-Contrecoup Injuries
The terms coup, contrecoup, and coup-contrecoup refer to the part of your brain that was damaged in the accident. Specifically:
- Coup injuries happen at the site of impact. In other words, coup brain injuries occur at the location where you hit your head.
- Contrecoup injuries occur on the opposite side of the point of impact. When you hit your head, the brain may bounce off of your skull and injure the side opposite the initial point of impact.
- Coup-contrecoup injuries occur when you suffer bruises on both sides of the brain.
Coup, contrecoup, and coup-contrecoup brain injuries can be sustained in accidents such as:
- Car crashes
- Motorcycle wrecks
- Truck accidents
- Bicycle crashes
- Slip and fall accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Assaults
- Sports accidents
- Boating accidents
Other types of accidents can also result in these serious brain injuries.
Coup and Contrecoup Brain Injury Symptoms and Treatment
Symptoms of coup, contrecoup, and coup-contrecoup brain injuries include:
- Trouble concentrating
- Memory issues
- Muscle weakness
- Paralysis
- Balance and coordination difficulties
- Sensory changes
A doctor may use imaging tests and a variety of assessments, including the Glasgow Coma Scale, Abbreviated Injury Scale, JFK Coma Recovery Scale-Revised, and other tests to confirm your brain injury.
Treatment may include hospitalization, in-patient rehabilitation, and out-patient rehabilitation.
Take Action After an Accident Causes Your Brain Injury
Your coup, contrecoup, or coup-contrecoup brain injury recovery can be long, expensive, and painful. If someone else’s negligent or intentional actions caused your brain injury, we encourage you to contact Florida brain injury attorney Coy H. Browning for a free, no-obligation case evaluation. If we take your case, we will fight hard for your fair recovery of past and future medical costs, rehabilitation expenses, out-of-pocket costs, lost income, pain, suffering, and other damages. You won’t owe us anything unless we get you compensation for your injuries. Call us today to learn more.
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