Miami Accident Lawyer Blog
Recovering from a car accident can involve many unexpected twists and turns, even when you did the right thing by seeking immediate medical attention after the crash. One of the biggest concerns for victims is when injuries appear to heal, only to redevelop later – possibly bringing more extreme pain and physical limitations. While the effects on your physical health are immediately obvious, there may also be implications for the legal process. Your damages are based, in part, on what you may suffer in the future. With recurring injuries, there are many unknowns in this respect.
The correlation between compensation and chronic medical conditions is a complicated issue, but it is one that Miami car accident lawyers deal with every day. Some background information may help you understand the basics.
Soft-Tissue Injuries
Recovery from a broken bone is usually predictable and takes just a few weeks after a doctor stabilizes the injury. Trauma to muscles, ligaments, and tendons in your spine, and other joints is very different. These soft-tissue injuries fall into multiple categories, according to experts at John Hopkins Medicine:
- Whiplash, an injury to the neck caused by violent back-and-forth movement of the head;
- Contusions, familiarly known as bruises, which mainly affect muscle tissue;
- Sprains to ligaments, especially ankles, knees, hips, or wrists;
- Inflammation of the tendons which connect muscle to bone, medically termed tendonitis;
- Bursitis, which affects the fluid-filled cushions between bones and tendons; and,
- Muscle or tendon strains.
Any of these injuries can be caused by blunt force, wrenching, twisting, or overextending the soft tissues, trauma that is common in the violent impact of a car accident.
Scar Tissue Can Exacerbate Injuries
Muscles, tendons, ligaments, and other soft tissues are malleable, so they can lengthen, shorten, or thicken depending on usage. When you need to rest injured soft tissues after an auto crash injury, you do not engage them in movement. The affected area does not heal normally, potentially causing scar tissue and complications for nearby joints. For this reason, soft tissue injuries may reappear weeks or months after you thought they healed. You may experience severe, chronic pain and other effects from:
- Osteoarthritis;
- Tingling and numbness;
- Loss of muscle strength; and,
- Physical limitations.
There are additional complications from whiplash, since the injury affects the upper spinal cord, neck, shoulders, and head. You may experience pain and stiffness, especially when turning your head and lifting your chin. Victims also suffer headaches, often emanating from the base of the skull.
Talk to a Miami Car Accidents Attorney About Recurring Injuries
Some auto crash injuries can redevelop or worsen over time, so assessing your future needs and medical treatment is a complicated process. As such, you are in a better position to obtain the full value of your claim when you work with a skilled lawyer. Our team at Gerson & Schwartz, PA has extensive experience fighting on behalf of clients with recurring injuries, so please contact our firm today. We can set up a no-cost consultation at our offices in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, or West Palm Beach, FL.