Car Wreck Injuries: Back Injuries

Back injuries are quite common in East Tennessee car wrecks. These kinds of injuries may occur in head-on collisions, rear-end crashes, or T-bone accidents. They may range from very mild bruises to disc herniation or even spinal cord damage and paralysis. The treatment and therapy for back injuries may be significant, and in serious injury cases, the cost may rise to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Knoxville car wreck lawyer Mark Hartsoe is ready to provide aggressive representation if you have been hit by a careless driver.

Although there are many safety features installed in today's cars, including seat belts and airbags, back injuries are common. Your back is composed of muscles, tendons, and ligaments that are interconnected with your spinal cord, discs, and vertebrae. The vertebrae are separated by discs that serve as shock absorbers for the vertebrae, and behind them is the spine. Nerve endings surround both the vertebrae and the spine.

If a nerve ending comes into contact with damaged soft tissue or a herniated disc, it may cause excruciating pain. Since all of these parts are interconnected, damage to any part of the back, even just a single disc, may have repercussions for other parts of the back and your overall health.

Common types of back injuries arising out of a car wreck are herniated discs, compression fractures, soft tissue bruising, dislocation fractures, and axial bursts. Doctors use a variety of methods to diagnose these injuries, which include MRIs, X-rays, and CT or CAT scans. After an accident, you should consult a doctor if you notice back pain, weakening of muscles, numbness, or tingling. Any back injury may be worsened by a failure to treat it. You should tell the doctor about your accident so that the other side cannot try to argue that your back injury was caused by exercise, work strain, or another cause.

In order to recover damages from another driver, you will need to establish that the driver's negligence was the cause of your back injuries. Part of the proof will be what you told the doctor and when you went to see the doctor. If you do not see a doctor right away, the other side may try to convince the jury that your injuries were not as serious as you claim or even that you failed to mitigate your damages. The doctrine of mitigation of damages requires a victim to use reasonable care to avoid or minimize the harm arising out of an accident if possible.

The damages that you may be able to recover if you establish a defendant's liability include the costs of medical treatment. To treat back injuries, doctors may prescribe over the counter, narcotic, or steroidal medications, physical therapy, an endoscopy, a laminectomy, kyphoplasty, spinal fusion, artificial disc replacement surgery, or a microdiscectomy. These treatments may be extremely expensive, and in some cases, a doctor will first prescribe milder treatments, such as physical therapy or steroid injections, and then recommend surgery if a conservative treatment plan is not working.

After a car wreck, it may take time to know the full extent of your back injuries and which treatments may be advisable. However, due to the short statute of limitations, it is important to consult both a doctor and an attorney right away. Knoxville car wreck attorney Mark Hartsoe has the tenacity and the experience to represent you if you suffer back injuries. Call the Hartsoe Law Firm at 865-804-1011 or contact us via our online form to set up a free appointment. We represent people who need a motor vehicle accident attorney throughout East Tennessee, including in Knox, Blount, Monroe, Loudon, Jefferson, Grainger, Cocke, Campbell, Hamblen, Greene, Anderson, Cumberland, and Fentress Counties.