$537,000 settlement for a man who required cervical fusion surgery following a car accident. If negotiating with the insurance company doesnt work, you might need to file a lawsuit to recoup your damages. Firstly, you have the loss of cervical lordosis. When neck and back injuries are catastrophic, settlement values can go into the millions. The control group only showed a neck disc arthritis incidence of 6%. The average settlement amount for a neck or back injury in Michigan is $462,900, and the median amount is $320,000. Call (727) 733-0433 for a cervical lordosis evaluation! $9,500 trial verdict for neck injuries resulting from a minor rear-end accident. We hope you found this article informative and it helped answer many of the questions you may have surrounding Whiplash associated disorders, Craniocervical Instability, upper cervical spine instability, cervical spine instability, or simply problems related to neck pain. Along the way, spinal cord injury victims may have several complications, including infection, bleeding blood clots, and pneumonia. Take the Quiz! An attorney is versed in negotiations with the insurance company and trial law, and they can effectively represent you in court. We will start by reviewing mechanism of injury and its importance to the value of your neck injury settlement payout. That is until something happens to them. The trauma from an auto accident can damage both the atlas and the axis, resulting in severe injuries. Lets take a moment to look at the various curvatures of the neck. Sagittal alignment of the cervical spine: do we know enough for successful surgery?. A 34-year-old man was rear-ended by a police officer. Article Author: This law article was written by attorney Ray Benyamin, Esquire. Let us help you win. 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. The bones that make up your spine are called vertebrae, and these bones are separated by jelly-like cushions called intervertebral discs. Neck disc injury cases that result in surgery average over $200,000. Pain and suffering are non-economic damage that can significantly increase your accident settlement. Loss of normal cervical curve. Rear end vehicle accident verdict with cervical soft tissue injury, $72,000 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. While this is not life threatening, it can lead to long term disability and can be included in your settlement demand. VA disability ratings for back pain go from 10% to 100% depending on how severe your symptoms are, including your range of motion and pain frequency and level. 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. The attorney listings on this site are paid attorney advertising. How Long Will It Take To Settle Your Personal Injury Case? A loss of cervical lordosis can absolutely cause neck and shoulder . The Spine Journal. Muscles, tendons, ligaments, and nerves help maintain the structure and integrity of your spine. The more serious your injury, the more problematic that becomes for you and your case. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Rear end truck accident settlement with cervical disc injury, $2,500,000 Rear end auto accident settlement with cervical soft tissue injury, $91,000 The cervical lordosis condition can occur to anyone of any age. Call our Washington auto accident lawyer at 425-399-7000 today for . Its key to work alongside a car accident lawyer to determine how your neck injury affects your lifetime income. If the at-fault driver was working when the accident occurred, such as in the UPS example above, you might be able to file a claim against their employer as well. Journal of accident & emergency medicine,13(1), 38. Lordotic curvatures are open towards the posterior of . Are you a chronic pain expert? Your lifelong symptoms from a neck injury may include: Mental disorders such as depression and anxiety, Less relaxing sleep or restless nights, Depressed or anxious from chronic pain. addresses the question of whiplash trauma and acceleration of degenerative disc disease. Car accident verdict with cervical soft tissue injury, $23,000 Not surprisingly, a lot of these outcomes stem from car accident injury cases: "Valuing" a personal injury case in this context often means coming up with a best guess at what a jury might award the person who is suing for a neck injury (the plaintiff), and then estimating: Regardless of which side is doing the calculating, the two big factors in valuing these kinds of cases are the extent of the plaintiff's injuries and other losses ("damages" in legalese) and how likely the jury is to find the defendant at fault for the accident that led to the neck injury. Kinematics of human cadaver cervical spine during low speed rear-end impacts. Your personal injury settlement will be directly impacted by your injury type and the medical treatment necessary. Non-economic damages typically include the hardships your accident caused, including: Average neck injury settlements can be hard to estimate. IAG Lawyers have recovered over $10,000,000 in auto accident insurance claims for injured clients like you. BMC public health,16, 13. Knowing the relationship between this injury and a specific impact type (rear-end accident) can help establish medical causation in your case. Even if the potential damages are high, a defendant will be less willing to settle and more inclined to take their chances at trial. If you have pain in your neck, you should go to the emergency room or an urgent care as soon as you can. Symptoms may not appear for weeks or months after the crash. At our center, we see many patients with chronic whiplash symptoms. What is the average settlement payout for a whiplash injury? 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. Whiplash personal injury compensation in an auto tort case is typically between $6,000 to $20,000 when the injuries are not permanent. Later in the article, I will explain how the Rectifier works. a congenital disorder. The story of Goldilocks and the three bears is analogous. . Generally speaking, the answer to this question depends on your injury severity and the treatment you get after your injury. $1,200,000 settlement for aggravation of pre-existing neck injury, requiring surgery, after plaintiff rear-ended in an, what the person being sued (the defendant) would be willing to pay, and. Seeking chiropractic help to either reverse the cervical lordosis, or improve the loss of the cervical lordosis, from a car accident can help prevent damage to the soft tissue in the neck and to the sensitive cervical spine ligaments. In more severe cases, whiplash can cause chronic headaches, dizziness, and vertigo. February 9, 2023. But despite their small size, they balance a whole lot of weight. Because every case and every jury is different, even the best analysis will still only predict pain and suffering damages within a broad range. Loss of cervical lordosis is a diagnostic finding most often seen on MRI reports in association with chronic neck pain. Secondly, you have a complete reversal of the lordotic curve (x-ray on the right). These cushion-like discs rest between each bone to prevent your vertebrae from painfully rubbing together, plus they give your spine flexibility to bend, twist, and move. Not to mention, your goal is likely to maximize your potential compensation. . Causing significant pain and having the potential to injure your spinal cord leading to paralysis, a neck fracture is an extremely serious injury that requires immediate medical attention. There should be cervical lordosis. There are those people who report numerous whiplash injuries and cannot even remember if they had neck issues before the first of the whiplash injuries or not. Whiplash injuries can be difficult to diagnose. More common causes of cervical lordosis are: Postural changes: A change in the curvature can happen over time with habitually poor posture when standing, frequent weightlifting . In fact, there are eight factors that influence the average settlement for cervical spine injuries. This occurs when there is an impact to the face while the head is in a neutral or bent position, and can produce fractures of the spinal processes, damage to the load bearing surfaces, and spine dislocations. Consider it this way:The National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Centerreports that the average lifetime cost of a spinal cord injury is $5 million for a 25-year-old victim. T-bone auto accident settlement with cervical disc injury, $1,941,000 Reduced curvatures in the neck are called hypolordotic conditions. Yes, whiplash can be a serious injury that can cause you to have lifelong chronic pain that will require medical treatment and possibly physical therapy. Uninsured & Underinsured Motorist Accidents, The National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center. The association between prevalent neck pain and health-related quality of life: a cross-sectional analysis. how far can a duck swim underwater / roy's ko olina menu / nypd 1 police plaza human resources phone number / loss of cervical lordosis car accident settlement; loss of cervical lordosis car accident settlement. We'll start with some examples of real-life verdicts and personal injury settlements involving neck injuries, then cover some key factors in figuring out what a neck injury claim might be worth. loss of cervical lordosis car accident settlement. Car Accident Case With Spinal Injury Settled for $380,000. When you go to the hospital following a car accident, they will often do an x-ray. This case was handled by Partner Jeffrey A. If it is related to posture and/or obesity, lifestyle issues might also need to be addressed. Can the straightening of the cervical spine lead to a worsening or delayed development of whiplash-related symptoms. To correct a loss of cervical lordosis, the underlying cause must be addressed. The truck operator then swerved the truck back into the victims lane, colliding directly into the victims vehicle. Vehicle accident settlement with cervical disc injury, $30,000 Neck Pain can also be caused due to poor sitting posture, degeneration due to normal aging process, and overuse. Car accident settlement with cervical disc injury, $100,000 You need to relay these symptoms to your doctors so they record it in your medical records, and to your injury attorney so its included in any settlement discussions. For instance, an injury that requires minimal treatment and recovery time will average roughly $25,000. If yes, contact a lawyer referral service. In turn, this factor increases its overall settlement amount. If someone else was at fault for the accident that led to your neck injury, the best way to get information that's tailored to your situation is to talk to a lawyer. Learn more about determining fault in a personal injury case. 2) Accidents on the cervical spine: when we talk about accidents to the cervical spine, our initial thought goes towards the classic car crash accident called "whiplash". A cervical spinal cord injury may also lead to bleeding, blood clots, and infections, such as pneumonia. The average neck injury settlement where a surgery is involved, such as an ACDF or anterior cervical discectomy and fusion, is around $225,000. A..R. Payne, M.D., S. Patel, O.P.E.R.A.S. The x-ray will not rule out a herniated disc or other discogenic injuries. Keep in mind that the average whiplash neck injury settlement amounts will include $2,000 whiplash car accident settlements and $200,000 whiplash auto accident settlements. With the Rectifier it is impossible to have a loss of cervical lordosis. Learn more about how the "right" medical treatment increases injury settlement value. If you give up work permanently or even on a short-term basis, the money lost through unearned wages are recoverable. 2020 Mar;6(1):124. This can lead to shoulder pain, numbness, and pins and needles, and can even affect the movement of . Anyone suspected of having such an injury should remain as immobile as possible until medical assistance arrives. Paralysis involves permanent damage . As many as 50% of injury victims go on to develop persistent symptoms that can have a detrimental effect upon their mental and physical well being. Journal of Spine Surgery. 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. Injury Advocates Group Attorneys, L.L.P, all rights reserved. The spine has three main sections: cervical (neck), thoracic (middle and upper back), and lumbar (lower back). It can be as much as 100% or as low as 1%. Whereas broken bone injuries are an event, whiplash injuries are a process, and take several weeks to complete that process. Do let them do that. Just like you, we want to make sure you are a good fit for our clinic prior to accepting your case. A herniated disc occurswhen the gel-like center of the intervertebral disc leaks into the spinal canal. This neck instability can also lead to or worsen injury to the facet joint of the cervical vertebrae. We will discuss them each in turn. They in fact felt fine and had no symptoms, then as a year or two passed their symptoms became progressively worse. If a spinal injury or trauma has damaged the spine and caused the loss of cervical lordosis, the injury must be addressed proactively to improve the spine's health . Having two avenues for filing could increase your settlement amount. Ongoing medical care for cervical spine injuries includes: Surgeries are a massive investmentnot just financially, but emotionally and physically. Obviously, the individual's case, who underwent the neck surgery, is valued much higher than the . No fee unless we win. Similarly, injuries requiring treatment by physiciansas opposed to chiropractors, or even physical therapistsare given more weight by many insurance adjusters. Not only does the impact of a collision affect the neck, but the anticipation of impact often causes the individual to tense their neck muscles, meaning that theyll have more potential for injury than if their muscles were relaxed. Minor Cervical Spine Neck Injury Settlement Amounts. First, this approach only works by showing, not telling, that your case is worth more. The other major factor in valuing a case is the likelihood a defendant will be found liable at trial. Let your body go through the recovery motions and keep an eye on yourself so that your neck injury settlement amount comprehensively covers everything you went through because of the accident. Her orthopedic diagnosed her with a cervical (neck) disc herniation at C4-5. In our settlements and verdicts page, we describe how even when lawyers use the same methodologies, they may reach different settlement averages for a similar case type. Hyperextension soft tissue injuries of the cervical spinea review. Car accident settlement with cervical soft tissue injury, $20,000 Loss of cervical lordosis can result in pain and stiffness in neck. The cervical spine is your neck, from the base of your skull to your shoulder blades. Attorney. Additionally, "hard" injuries like a fractured bone (cervical fracture in the case of a neck injury) tend to result in larger settlements than soft tissue injuries like whiplash or pinched nerve (cervical radiculopathy). Here is how we treat every one of our clients cases: If your lawyer goes all in and builds your whiplash case like a six-figure case, no surprise, it is more likely to become a six-figure case. Whether or not lordosis should be the expected finding in the cervical spine is still under question. Arizona has a two-year statute of limitations for a car accident personal injury claim. The truck operator rear-ended the victims car in stop-and-go traffic, causing devastating neck injuries. Whiplash symptoms can appear days or weeks after the accident occurred. Unfortunately, f you are an injury victim dealing with whiplash, you will be unhappy to hear it is less than $10,000. Verdict/Settlement Amount. Yes. After suffering a cervical spine injury, you likely have dozens of questionsamong the first may be how to reclaim the damages youre owed. For mild cervical kyphosis, your provider will recommend nonsurgical treatment. As mentioned above, close to 50% of all soft tissue and whiplash neck injuries are permanent. A paper in the Spine Journal (3) examined the significance of cervical sagittal alignment in people who did not recover well or at all from a whiplash injury and found the existence of an association between the constitutional (the functioning) sagittal alignment of the cervical spine and the outcome after whiplash injuries. 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. Wade, K. R., Robertson, P. A., Thambyah, A., & Broom, N. D. (2014). If you have already done this, stop reading and call a lawyer ASAP. Cervical Spondylosis. Special damages are also referred to as economic damages for this reason. The C3, C4, and C5 vertebrae form the midsection of the cervical spine, near the base of the neck. An insurance adjuster will consider how much damage was done to the vehicles involved in the car accident before making a settlement offer, check whether the claimants injury shows up on an x-ray or an MRI, look at how long the recovery period was, and whether the neck injury is permanent. How quickly does a neck injury manifest itself? Generally, whiplash creates localized neck and shoulder pain, as well as a limited range of motion in the cervical spine. The Cervical Spine Research Society. 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. What they do know is that they are getting a lot of injections and adjustments and nothing seems to be helping them. Muscle Weakness. Ultimately, those who have whiplash injuries have been often shown to have poor quality of life long after their accidents. For example, a victim with serious injuries may experience a significantly decreased quality of life. Compression fractures can cause chronic pain that worsens with movement over time. Cervical lordosis loss causes severe pain, discomfort and affects the patient's ability for normal movement of the neck and shoulders. Cervical lordosis is a curvature of the neck from the sagittal or side view. In most cases that injury was brought on by car accident or sports injury. Examples of special damages included in an accident settlement: General damages are expenses that are not capable of exact calculation. Mr. Benyamin is a registered member of the following legal organizations: Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles(CAALA), theLos Angeles County Bar Association(LACBA), theState Bar of California, theAmerican Bar Association (ABA), and the American Association for Justice (AAJ). When extreme force is put on an unhealthy cervical curve during an auto . Yes. Loss of cervical lordosis meaning is referred to as the condition in which the cervical curve arches too far inward. absence of cervical lordosis . 3.Fracture. Theyre tied to a precise number, which can usually be found on a receipt, bill, or statement. The thoracic spine is your mid-back, from your shoulder blades to the bottom of your ribs. Only then will the insurance carrier look at the case differently and offer an above average settlement payout for your whiplash injury claim. Ross Hauser, MDCan a car accident cause straightening of your cervical spine? $3,500,000 Rear-end vehicle accident settlement with cervical disc injury, $535,000 Whiplash can heal and pain symptoms go away as short as a few weeks, but in some cases, it has been shown that whiplash can last up to a decade. We see this too often, where someone is in a car accident and does not think they are injured or thinks they are injured only a little. Special damages are expenses that are capable of exact calculation. The surrounding ligaments may also be damaged, affecting the individuals range of motion and movement of their joints. This is evidenced by the multi-million examples above in which all victims required surgery. These bones run from the base of your skull to the top of your shoulders. Surgeries involve lengthy hospital visits and require rehabilitation. Let's talk. Bulging disc injuries and herniated disc injuries can also press on the spinal cord, transmitting intense pain to the legs and lower back. The average first-year cost for a quadriplegic is $1.5 million. Filing an injury claimallows you to sue the responsible party and/or their insurance company to recoup your damages. The disc herniation itself can cause pain and swelling, but the aggravation to surrounding nerves can create a tingling, burning, and stabbing sensation. The victim sustained serious injuries to his neck and lower back, including herniated discs. Just like the thoracic and lumbar spine, the cervical spine is incredibly vulnerable to injury during a car crash. Spine,39(13), 1018-1028. A violent car accident can traumatize the sensitive components of your spine, which can lead to spinal injuries or debilitating back pain. MVA's especially rear-enders cause serious injuries to the body's soft tissues (MUSCLES, LIGAMENTS, TENDONS, and most particularly, FASCIA - especially in the SCM), and can defy most treatment approaches (). Slowly turn your head from neutral position to the right and left side of your body and back to neutral position again. Claims involving both the cervical spine and the thoracolumbar spine are rated under the same general rating formula. Car accident verdict with cervical soft tissue injury. How healthy discs herniate: a biomechanical and microstructural study investigating the combined effects of compression rate and flexion. [Google Scholar] You could end up with $2,000 if you dont hire a lawyer who will protect the value of your claim. 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. Clearly, these people had asymptomatic neck issues which were now made symptomatic because of the whiplash. The result is a negative impact on your case and neck injury settlement amount. 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. If three drivers rear-end each other, a percentage of the fault goes to the last two drivers, for example. As the disks dehydrate and shrink, signs of osteoarthritis develop, including bony projections along the edges of bones (bone spurs). According to clinical research and empirical evidence. A spine injury from a car accident is an injury to the cervical, lumbar or thoracic spine. The cost of physical therapy in that case was a bit over $7,000. Nothing on this website is, or should be taken as, legal advice. Can the straightening of the cervical spine lead to a worsening or delayed development of whiplash-related symptoms. From heightened emotions to feeling generally overwhelmed, car accident victims can experience high levels of stress, anxiety, depression, and even PTSD. In the illustration below we see the various measurements and landmarks that help doctors and patients understand their cervical spine instability. Cervical spondylosis is a general term for age-related wear and tear affecting the spinal disks in your neck. A bulging disc occurs when the outer cartilage of the spinal disc cracks, revealing its soft center. When symptoms of a whiplash injury following a car accident persist for two years or more, the symptoms have a strong likelihood of being permanent.