|
Herniated Disc Truck Accident Cases
Our truck accident lawyers frequently handle herniated disc
truck
accident cases in Maryland and around the country. Because
of the force that is involved in a typical truck accident, it
is not surprising that herniated disc injuries, particularly in
our attorneys' experience back herniations, are all too common.
Below are frequently asked question truck accident victims ask
about herniated disc cases, along with sample MRI reports and
operative notes in herniated disc cases.
What is a herniated disc?
Spinal discs are soft, rubbery pads are found between the hard
bones that make up the spinal column. These discs work as shock
absorbers between the hard bones (vertebrae), cushioning them
when we contort our bodies in our daily activities. Spinal disks
allow the back and neck to flex and bend. Spinal discs have an
external shell with a liquid substance in the middle. The metaphor
our lawyers often use with juries in truck accident cases is that
the discs are analogous to jelly donuts. If a spinal disc is injured
as the result of the trauma of a truck accident, the "jelly"
liquid may seep out of the spinal disc. If the inner core of the
disc extrudes back into the spinal canal it may impact a nerve
root. The weak spot in a spinal disc is directly under the nerve
root and a herniated disc can put great pressure on the nerve,
which can cause pain to radiate throughout the person's body.
Where the pain radiates to in the body depends on where the
disc herniation occurs. When a patient has a symptomatic herniated
disc, the pain is not in the disc area; rather, the disc herniation
is pinching a nerve in the spine that causes 'radicular' pain.
This radicular pain is often described by truck accident victims
as a pain that shoots through the body, usually to one area in
particular, because each nerve in the spine is connected to a
particular area of the body. This pain can be nerve root pain,
leg pain if the herniation is in the lumbar (back), or arm pain
from a cervical (neck) herniated disc.
A herniated disc is rarely diagnosed in the emergency room after
a truck accident. This is because the disc is invisible on an
x-ray. Accordingly, a patient typically needs a CT scan or magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI) test so that a physician can pick
up a disc herniation. A discography, myelography, or an electromyography
are also used to diagnose herniated discs. Medical experts agree
that these diagnostic tests cannot diagnose the injury victim's
pain. There is only a loose correlation between the degree of
the herniation and the patient pain symptoms because there are
so many variables involved.
What is a herniated disc case worth by settlement or
at trial?
Because our lawyers have successfully tried a number of herniated
disc cases and have received national
exposure for our jury verdicts in these cases, we receive
at least once a week this inquiry: what is the settlement or trial
value of my herniated disc injury that was caused by a truck accident?
The answer, naturally, is that it depends on the injury. Some
herniated disc injuries leave a patient in constant pain for the
rest of their lives. These patients try traction, steroid injections,
therapy and surgery and still find themselves in pain that will
last a lifetime. Assuming (1) no question as to responsibility
for the auto accident, (2) no preexisting injury or pre-accident
degenerative disease, (3) reasonable insurance coverage for the
negligent driver, and (4) the injury causes pain and suffering
such that the victim's life is changed, the settlement value of
these types of herniated disc cases are typically six figure and
sometimes even seven figure cases.
The more complicated truck accident herniated disc case our
lawyers deal with involve preexisting injuries. A favorite tactic
of truck accident lawyers defending personal injury cases on behalf
of the trucking companies involving herniated discs is pointing
the finger at preexisting degenerative problems with an injury
victim's spine such as spinal stenosis, spondylolisthesis, and
osteoarthritis. Most of these are conditions that begin in many
people in their early 30s. Therefore, it must be established that
the patient's problems are not due to the degenerative condition,
but to the trauma sustained in the accident.
All of this begs the question of what happens when a person
has a preexisting herniated disc or some type of degenerative
changes and are without significant symptoms before the truck
accident. There are two Maryland jury
instructions on point: the susceptibility
instruction (Maryland Pattern Jury Instruction 10:3) and aggravation
of preexisting condition instruction (Maryland Pattern Jury
Instruction 10:4). If you have either one of these issues, you
and your attorney must be able to clearly articulate the difference
between your problems and treatment before the auto accident and
your current condition. If there is no difference in your condition
after the accident, your chances of a substantial recovery diminish
dramatically. On the other hand, if there is a notable difference
in your way of life after the accident that would not have occurred
in the absence of the truck accident, your chance of a quality
settlement or verdict increases dramatically.
Example Report of Magnetic
Resonance Imaging (MRI) Thorasic Spine
Example Report of Magnetic Resonance Imaging
(MRI) Cervical Spine, without contrast
Example Report of Magnetic Resonance Imaging
(MRI) Cervical Spine & Lumbar Spine
Example Operative Notes on
Lumbar Spine
Example Operative Notes on
Cervical Spine
See also Maryland
Truck Accident Lawyer Blog
See also Value
of Wrongful Death Truck Accident Cases
See also Data
on Truck Accident Verdicts and Settlements
|
