Types of Accidents:
Personal injuries can occur many different ways. Some of the more common causes of injuries are:
- Car Accidents
- Truck Accidents
- Slip and Falls
- Trip and Falls
- Medical Malpractice
- Pharmacy Errors
- Dog Bites
- Assault
- Product Liability
- Work Place Injuries
While most injuries are minor, some can result in lifelong impairment and disfigurement. Here is a list of some of the more common injuries that I have seen in over 20 years of practice.
Common Injuries
- Brain Injury/Concussions/Post Concussion Syndrome/Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI): A concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury (TBI) that I often see in personal injury cases. It can be caused by a bump, blow, or jolt which causes the brain to move rapidly. Concussion side effects can include: headaches, blurred vision, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, tinnitus. Serious concussions can result in post concussion syndrome, which may last months or years.
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI): A traumatic brain injury often results from a violent blow to the head. It can have many diverse physical and psychological effects. Some of these effects may not be immediately apparent.
- Back Pain: Back pain is very common following slip and falls and car accidents. Back pain is sometimes referred to as: back sprain, back strain, thoracic sprain and strain, or a lumbar sprain and strain. The thoracic spine is located at the center of your middle and upper back. back pain can be in the form of upper, lower, or middle back pain.
- Herniated Disc: This type of an injury is often referred to as a bulging disc, slipped disc, or ruptured disc. This may be a degenerative condition, and many insurance companies claim that this is a pre-existing condition.
- Neck Pain: Neck pain/Strain aka cervical strain and sprain is a very common injury. Whiplash is a neck injury caused by the neck suddenly moving back and forth.
- Paralysis: This is a permanent or temporary inability to move all or some of your body.
- Fractures: A fracture is a partial or total breaking of a bone. Common fractures and breaks include: Broken/Fractured Wrist, Broken/Fractured Arm,
- Broken/Fractured Neck aka Cervical Fracture: This occurs when there is a break in a bone on the neck. Cervical fractures are often caused by falls and car accidents.
- Broken/Fractured Rib(s)
- Broken/Fractured Hip
- Broken/Fractured Lumbar Spine
- Broken/Fractured Back, Broken/Fractured Ankle, Broken/Fractured Toe (s), Broken/Fractured Foot, Broken/Fractured Hand,
- Broken/Fractured Spine
- Broken/Fractured Knee
- Broken/Fractured Cervical
- Burns: Burns are a common injury which can result from fires, defective products, and work place accidents.
- First Degree Burns are superficial and damage the outer layer of the skin. This is the least damaging type of burn.
- Second Degree Burns cause damage to the second layer of skin. Second degree burns affect the epidermis (outer lawyer) and dermis of the skin. Personal injury cases involving second degree burns often are caused by: scald injuries, chemicals, electric burns. Second degree burns result in blisters, redness, skin that is painful to touch.
- Third Degree Burns are more serious, and cause damage to the first and second layers of skin and the tissue underneath.
- Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS): What is chronic regional pain syndrome (CRPS)? CRPS is a chronic pain that typically affects an arm of leg after trauma, such as a dog bite. Oftentimes, the pain seems out of proportion to the injury. Even a seemingly minor dog bite can result in CRPS. Alarmingly, CRPS can spread to affect other body parts over time. CRPS is considered one of the most painful medical conditions that any person can suffer. It is a 42/50 on the McGill University pain scale. This is higher than many forms of cancer, and some amputations. CRPS is a condition that I have seen many times with dog bites. It is a condition that doctors are still fully trying to understand. It is not unheard of for many people to see numerous doctors before they are finally diagnosed with CRPS.
- The symptoms of CRPS are:
- pain
- increased pain sensitivity
- numbness
- changes in skin temperature
- changes in skin color
- changes in skin texture
- swelling
- rapid nail growth
- no nail growth
- Orthopedic Injuries:
- Rotator Cuff Tear
- Dislocated Shoulder
- ACL Tear
- MCL Tear
- Meniscus Tear (Torn meniscus)
- Shoulder Tendon Tear
- Dental/Broken Teeth: Many accidents may result in chipped teeth, or loss of teeth. Remedial dental procedures can be very expensive, and should be accounted for when settling your personal injury claim.