$300,000 verdict for a woman in a car accident who sustained disc herniations, required surgery and experienced a 60% loss of range of motion in her neck. The x-ray will not rule out a herniated disc or other discogenic injuries. Accident victims with serious injuries often struggle to find or return to work. To find out what you might be able to claim for your neck injury, schedule a free consultation with one of our lawyers via email or the contact form below. Theyre tied to a precise number, which can usually be found on a receipt, bill, or statement. Military neck is an unusual curve in your cervical spine (this is your neck) called cervical kyphosis. In most cases that injury was brought on by car accident or sports injury. Soft tissue injuries themselves, as well as the above common back injuries, can create nerve damage, which furthers feelings of pain and discomfort. Lumbar spinal injuries from car accidents can be serious, and the lifetime costs of any spinal cord injury can be extensive for victims. Along with this injury came the new onset of symptoms of headaches, vertigo, vision problems, anxiety, blood pressure problems, and other neurologic and cardiovascular-like symptoms. The cost of this surgical procedure was greater than $33,000. Before searching for cervical spine injury settlement amounts, its important to fully understand the types of damages that can be included in an injury claim. The only way to get an accurate idea of the value of your injury claim is through aconsultation with an attorney. The victim sustained serious injuries to his neck and lower back, including herniated discs. The average jury verdict for whiplash injuries in auto tort cases over the last five years is just under $20,000. There is no right or wrong answer, only a right or wrong answer for you and where you are in your life. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of scholarly articles discussing the concern for untruthful or exaggerated whiplash injury claims. We will discuss them each in turn. Car accident neck injury settlement amounts related to whiplash can often double and triple, but only after we push the case towards the finish line i.e., into litigation towards trial. The largest amount found was a $1,5 million arbitration award paid to a mentally disabled victim after an accident involving a special transportation bus. The victim suffered disc bulges in two spots in his lower back and disc protrusions at three spots in his neck. If your medical records show no prior complaints of neck pain prior to the accident, it could increase the value of your injury case. Our auto accident practice includes service in the follow areas: Serving all of Los Angeles, including Arcadia, Beverly Hills, Claremont, Canoga Park, Chino, Chino Hills, Covina, Diamond Bar, Downey, East Pasadena, El Monte, Encino, Highland Park, Inglewood, La Verne, Long Beach, Malibu, Montebello, Monterey Park, North Hollywood, Northridge, Pasadena, Pomona, Rancho Cucamonga, Reseda, Rosemead, San Gabriel, San Dimas, Santa Monica, Sherman Oaks, South Bay, South LA, South Pasadena, Sunland, Tarzana, Thousand Oaks, Torrance, Van Nuys, Venice, West Covina, West Hollywood, and Westlake Village. A minor sprain can heal within a few weeks. Philadelphia, Pa.: Elsevier; 2018. https://www.clinicalkey.com. $9,500 trial verdict for neck injuries resulting from a minor rear-end accident. The best way to know if your injury is serious is to contact a medical professional and get the proper testing. Whiplash is one form of soft tissue neck injury. (800) 400-5050 Free Consultation 247. Cervical spine neck injuries can be physically, emotionally, and financially devastating. Her orthopedic diagnosed her with a cervical (neck) disc herniation at C4-5. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes. Craning the neck at a 60-degree angle to look down a phone you just pulled out of your pocket increases the pressure on the neck by 5-6 times, and it can also lead to a straightening of the vertebrae. If the injured accident victim has to seek physical therapy, injections, or other procedures to treat the soft tissue . A cervical spinal cord injury may also lead to bleeding, blood clots, and infections, such as pneumonia. Spinal cord damage can cause you to lose sensation in parts of your body or lose reflex functions altogether. The information provided on this site is not legal advice, does not constitute a lawyer referral service, and no attorney-client or confidential relationship is or will be formed by use of the site. In an auto accident, this can cause you to have short-term and long-term pain. They are inundated with average injury attorneys who will settle your case fast while leaving money on the table. The more identifiable symptoms are in your medical records, the more ammunition your lawyer will have to argue for a larger settlement. Testimonials and endorsements do not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter. T-bone car accident settlement with cervical disc injury, $1,500,000 What is the average settlement payout for a whiplash injury? The surrounding ligaments may also be damaged, affecting the individuals range of motion and movement of their joints. To continue on with this discussion, please see my article Treatment of Whiplash associated disorders. To correct a loss of cervical lordosis, the underlying cause must be addressed. loss of cervical lordosis may be found in 14% of normal children. The process of deterioration makes it nearly impossible for spondylosis to be linked to trauma that is directly caused by car accidents. An un-savvy car accident attorney will skip the medical lesson, and this limits their ability to prove the full extent of a clients injuries. Helping to stabilize and mobilize the head and neck, the facet joints in the cervical spine can become inflamed and irritated during a car accident. This includes becoming . Damage to the spinal cord or discs due to shearing and bending between the cervical vertebrae, physical stretching of the spinal cord or direct impingement by fractured vertebrae. Management and Treatment How is cervical kyphosis treated? If this occurs, your lawyer will advise you about moving forward with a civil lawsuit against the other motorist and their insurance company. Do NOT use this as the average value of YOUR case. Wallis BJ, Bogduk N., Faking a profile: can naive subjects simulate whiplash responses? In Washington, Max Meyers Law can help. Some symptoms can take up to weeks to manifest. This is not the time to macho up and play down your symptoms. The at-fault motorist then fled the scene. Before diving into a lawsuit, your car accident attorney will first attempt to work with the at-fault drivers insurance company to recoup damages. There is some controversy as to whether a straight spine or military neck cervical spinal alignment is the cause of a patients whiplash-associated problems following the injury. Hyperextension injuries can also cause vertebrae and spine dislocation. Symptoms may not appear for weeks or months after the crash. The other major factor in valuing a case is the likelihood a defendant will be found liable at trial. 1996 Aug;66(2-3):223-7. It can be caused by: a degenerative disc disease. The average neck injury settlement where a surgery is involved, such as an ACDF or anterior cervical discectomy and fusion, is around $225,000. Cervical lordosis meaning is that it refers to the normal curve of the spinal cord. Best loss of cervical lordosis settlement lawyer. Here are a few real-world examples of personal injury cases involving neck injuries. Also referred to as whiplash-associated disorder (WAD), its actually a type of sprain caused by a tear in the necks delicate ligaments. A muscle is a band of tissue responsible for movement. If your neck injury is a damaged spinal disc in your neck, more formally known as a cervical disc injury, then this might only impact you a little, or none at all, depending on the type of cervical disc injury you have. This is evidenced by the multi-million examples above in which all victims required surgery. Compression fractures generally occur in the thoracic (mid-back) or lumbar spine (lower back). Our lawyers have recovered $200,000+ settlements for these types of injuries, but it is a dogged fight. An MRI revealed a herniated disc to her cervical spine, and she ultimately underwent a cervical fusion surgery. However, a person with pre-existing spondylosis has a much greater risk of intensifying the illness or causing other types of back problems to occur. A bulging disc occurs when the outer cartilage of the spinal disc cracks, revealing its soft center. Fair or not, many insurance companies will gauge the seriousness of an injury based on the nature and cost of the medical treatment required. These numbers are weighed down by the fact that the average accident involves a short, 3-6 week injury and minor collision. Violent collisions may damage one or more spinal discs, causing a bulge or disc herniation. Article Author: This law article was written by attorney Ray Benyamin, Esquire. During a car accident, the rapid forward-backward or side-to-side motion can cause these delicate tissues to stretch or tear. Copyright 2023 MH Sub I, LLC dba Nolo Self-help services may not be permitted in all states. Neck injuries are one of the most common vehicle accident injuries, second only to bruises and contusions. Early documentation of damage (especially if it includes a diagnosis) can increase the value of your back injury settlement. Be Careful with Seemingly Not Serious Neck Injuries, Neck Injury Settlements & Verdicts From Vehicle Accidents, Insurance Company Valuations of Neck Injuries, Danger of Early Settlements in Neck Injury Claims, Get Help With Your Neck Injury Settlement, Supporting Citations, Literature & Resources, cervical spine can become inflamed and irritated, Hyperextension soft tissue injuries of the cervical spinea review, Cervical Herniated Disc Symptoms and Treatment Options, Five years after the accident, whiplash casualties still have poorer quality of life in the physical domain than other mildly injured casualties, How healthy discs herniate: a biomechanical and microstructural study investigating the combined effects of compression rate and flexion. For instance, an injury that requires minimal treatment and recovery time will average roughly $25,000. Muscle irritations can be caused by disk herniations , muscle sprains, and fractures. Clearly, these people had asymptomatic neck issues which were now made symptomatic because of the whiplash. snoopy happy dance emoji 8959 norma pl west hollywood ca 90069 8959 norma pl west hollywood ca 90069 $250,000 settlement for aggravation of a pre-existing neck injury in a car accident. Jaw pain. But achieving a neck injury car accident settlement is not as cut-and-dry as you may think. In fact, there are eight factors that influence the average settlement for cervical spine injuries. $537,000 settlement for a man who required cervical fusion surgery following a car accident. Do NOT give the insurance adjuster any past medical documents or sign an authorization for them to collect these documents without speaking with a lawyer. In the image below are x-rays of a lordotic curve (correct neck curvature) and the gradual loss of lordosis to a straightening or military curve, an eventual reverse curve or Kyphotic curve, and eventual reverse of the reverse curve the S curve signifying cervical spine instability. They in fact felt fine and had no symptoms, then as a year or two passed their symptoms became progressively worse. That means, you or your lawyer lawyer cant just write and shout that your case is worth more, or demand more. As its name suggests, post-traumatic kyphosis is a condition that results from serious injury, such as a fall from a height, a motor vehicle accident, a horseback riding accident, or even a bounce off a wave while boating. Johnson G. (1996). When should I involve a Prolotherapist in my care? We keep mentioning the intervertebral discs in this article, and for good reason. Several radiological cervical angular variables (the change of the angle of the cervical spine as in lesser angle degree manifest as straightening or loss of lordosis) are suggested to have constitutional (impacting the neck and the whole body) characteristics, that is, them being minimally influenced by body positioning (the neck curvature has become its own world, the movements of the body no longer impact a neck with significant curve problems). Special damages are expenses that are capable of exact calculation. It is best for an attorney to help you navigate this and help you make a decision versus taking the first offer that you are given. If you are 100% better, or think you are, wait another 30-60 days and see how you feel.