According to one report, car crashes are the leading cause of spinal cord injuries. When you add motorcycle crashes, nearly 40% of all spinal cord injuries are vehicle-related. The injuries sustained from a vehicle crash can vary greatly and depend on several factors.
Soft tissue injuries are the most common injuries sustained in Las Vegas traffic accidents, and they typically resolve relatively quickly, often requiring minimal medical attention. However, serious bodily injuries, such as spinal cord injuries, often require extensive medical attention and may take months, if not years, to treat and rehabilitate. If you or a loved one has suffered such an injury, it’s essential to consult with an experienced Las Vegas Spine Injury Lawyer to ensure you get the compensation you deserve for your medical expenses and long-term care.
Many personal injury attorneys in Las Vegas seek quick settlements for your car wreck. The Schnitzer Law Firm focuses on your recovery and the maximum compensation possible for clients.
This approach requires the client to rely on medical care without being pressured by insurance companies. It is an approach that also seeks to prevent Las Vegas car accidents and the devastating injuries accompanying wrecks on our city streets.
First — What Is a Spinal Cord Injury (SCI)?
Most SCIs are trauma-based. Trauma can be psychological or physical, and a victim of a severe traffic accident may experience both types. Here, we focus on physical trauma, specifically physical trauma to the spinal cord.
The spinal cord is the information pathway from the brain to the rest of the body. Interrupting the messages traveling this pathway can significantly affect a person’s health and quality of life. Most SCIs fall into two groups:
- A complete spinal cord injury
- An incomplete spinal cord injury
A complete SCI permanently damages the affected area of the spinal cord. Permanent damage can lead to paralysis of the lower half of the body (paraplegia) or paralysis of all four limbs (tetraplegia).
An incomplete SCI signifies partial damage to the spinal cord. Movement and feeling depend on the area of the injured spine and the injury’s severity.
Symptoms and Treatment of an SCI
Victims may first believe they are not injured depending on the type and location of damage sustained in a car crash. Symptoms of an SCI requiring immediate medical attention include:
- Weakness in the limbs
- Loss of sensation in the arms and or legs
- Incontinence
- Severe neck or back pain
- Breathing difficulties
- And more
SCIs can be treated in various ways. Surgery may be necessary to tend to SCIs caused by broken bones, while less invasive corticosteroid injections may:
- Improve the flow of blood
- Benefit nerve function
- Lower inflammation
Long-term treatment for serious SCIs includes:
- Improving the quality of life and independence
- Lowering the risk of continuing health problems
- Rehabilitating nerve function where possible
When extensive care and treatment are necessary for an SCI sustained due to a car wreck that was not your fault, you want and deserve to know that you will receive all critical medical care and rehabilitation.
Physical Trauma
Serious injury to the body is physical trauma. There are two main types:
- Blunt force trauma: when an object or force strikes the body, often resulting in concussions, deep cuts, or broken bones
- Penetrating trauma: when an object pierces the skin or body, usually creating an open wound
Blunt force trauma injuries generally fall into four categories:
- Contusion, commonly bruising
- Abrasion, often called a scrape or a graze
- Laceration or cut
- Fracture or broken bone
The attorneys at The Schnitzer Law Firm recognize that necessary medical treatment takes time and how much time is a matter for physicians to decide, not insurance companies. If you suffer an SCI in a traffic collision caused by someone else, you deserve fair, adequate, and satisfactory compensation for your injuries.
The insurance company of the person who caused your injuries will pressure you to complete treatment and accept a settlement for your claim. But there is no time clock ticking on your recovery. The Las Vegas law firm that will insulate you from pressure by adjusters is The Schnitzer Law Firm.
Strategies for Preventing SCIs Caused by Traffic Accidents
The personal injury attorneys in Las Vegas, The Schnitzer Law Firm, promote safe driving standards for preventing car wrecks and lessening injuries resulting from a car wreck. These include:
- Focus on driving. Don’t let yourself be distracted. Refuse to multi-task by not using a phone while driving.
- Drive defensively. The driving principle of defensive driving is alertness. Assume all other drivers are not practicing attentiveness. Anticipate the worse thing they could do that might endanger you and how you would need to avoid it.
- Drive the way you want other drivers to drive. Many drivers are reactive. They respond quickly and often emotionally to situations on the roadway. By not becoming that driver, you avoid being the reason for irrational driving behavior in others.
You practice safe driving skills and tactics to protect your passengers and yourself from car wrecks and other perils when driving defensively. Defensive driving aims to prevent car accidents, especially ones that result in serious physical injury.
Call or Click Today
The attorneys at The Schnitzer Law Firm hope you are never in a car crash, especially one involving serious injury. If you or a loved one suffered a severe injury in a car wreck, call the number below for a FREE consultation about your case.
For more information, visit The Schnitzer Law Firm at theschnitzerlawfirm.com or call (702) 960-4050.
