Back and Neck Injury Claims

Back and Neck Injury Claims, Lawyers and Lawsuits

If you have ever sprained your neck or pulled a muscle in your back, you know in part the excruciating pain that can accompany a back or neck injury. The back and neck are home to the spinal cord as well as to the spinal column and protective muscles designs to stabilize and protect these important and vulnerable body parts. Though strong, the back and neck are not invulnerable but are in fact susceptible to injury – especially in young children, the elderly, and those with preexisting conditions or illnesses that impact the strength of their backs. A back injury sustained in a car accident or other personal injury accident can be crippling and result in considerable expense to the victim in the form of medical bills, surgery costs, rehabilitative therapy expenses, wages lost due to missed work, and other complications that can arise in these situations.

Top Causes of Back and Neck Injuries

Because of the muscles located in the back, a normal, healthy adult’s back and neck can sustain some trauma without causing significant injury or pain. If the back or neck is placed under sufficient strain or trauma, however, injury will almost certainly result. Some of the causes of back and neck injuries are within the control of the injury victim him- or herself, but many others require a third party to act in a reckless or careless manner. These other causes include:

Overexertion, which often results when a person attempts to pick up or move an object that is exceedingly heavy. Manufacturers who ship goods in boxes should indicate that a box is likely to be heavy with clear and conspicuous warnings.
Poor lifting technique, that is, attempting to lift a heavy load with one’s back and spine instead of with one’s legs. If a worker is expected to lift loads as part of his or her job duties, the employer should provide adequate training to the worker as to how he or she can safely perform his or her job duties.
Repetitive motions that can injure the back or neck even if the load involved is not heavy. For instance, an office worker who routinely moves light boxes and packages from one shelf to another in a workroom may cause injury or trauma to his or her back or neck, resulting in pain.
Falls are one of the leading causes of back and neck injuries. A fall from any height can impact the back and/or neck, but (obviously) falls from greater heights carry with them a risk of greater injury. The risk of serious or catastrophic harm also increases if the person lands on a hard surface or an object (such as a toy, railing, or other foreign body.
Car accidents can still cause injury to the back and/or neck despite advances in automobile safety that have been made in recent years. In a head-on or rear-end collision, the force of the impact can send the head and neck forcefully in one direction while the back remains relatively stationary because of the seatbelt. Side impacts place unnatural forces on the body as well. As can be expected, car accidents in which the victim is not wearing a safety belt or restraint system are almost guaranteed to cause injury to the back.

A back or neck injury can cause any number of painful conditions requiring medical intervention and/or therapy to correct, including:

Bulging discs, herniated discs, and/or ruptured discs;
Fractures in the vertebrae and/or spinal column;

Nerve damage and sciatica;
Paralysis.

Some of these conditions may affect the injury victim for the rest of his or her life. In such a case, the focus of medical care and treatment is not placed on the victims’ recovery but rather assisting the victim in managing the pain and/or limitations caused by the condition.

Seeking Medical Treatment for a Back and Neck Injury

Back and neck injuries may not immediately manifest any symptoms if the victim’s adrenaline is running high or if the victim has other injuries. In the days and weeks following the injury accident, however, pain and stiffness may begin to set in. In order to avoid complications and worsening of symptoms, an individual involved in a fall, car accident, or other injury accident that he or she believes affected his or her back should seek medical treatment as soon as possible – not wait for symptoms to appear. Furthermore, if the victim believes he or she has neck or back injuries, he or she should attempt to immobilize his or her head and back until medical treatment can be obtained. Further movement can exacerbate any back or neck injury that may be present.

Stern Law, PLLC understands that back and neck injuries mean you are not able to work and cannot fully participate in the activities that you and your family might enjoy. Stern Law, PLLC is committed to helping back and neck injury victims recover compensation for these and other losses. Contact attorney Ken Stern to discuss your back and neck injury case and what you can do to begin the recovery process by calling (844) 808-7529.