Spinal cord injuries from serious car crashes, falls, and other accidents can leave victims with long-term injuries and disabilities. Victims of these kinds of injuries might have to see multiple specialists and experts to seek medical treatment for their injuries, and they could miss work during their recovery. This can lead to numerous expenses that the victim did not have a hand in creating, and victims can often sue the at-fault parties for compensation.
For help with your potential case, call our Houston spinal cord injury lawyers today. The Queenan Law Firm represents victims of spinal cord injuries and other serious back injuries in Houston and the surrounding areas. For a free case consultation, call our law offices today at (817) 476-1797.
Types of Spinal Cord Injuries from Accidents in Houston
Spinal cord injuries can take many forms. The entire back and spinal column consist of an intricate combination of muscles, tendons, bones, soft tissue, and nerves. Any injuries can throw the spinal column out of alignment or cause more traumatic damage to the back and spine, resulting in many possible effects and symptoms.
Compression and Impingement
Injuries from misalignment can cause the bones and tissue in the spinal column to “impinge” on the spinal cord. Like a kink in a hose, this impingement or “compression” prevents the spinal cord from having things pass through, meaning that signals from your brain do not necessarily make it past the point where the impingement is located. This can lead to tingling sensations, numbness, and loss of motor function below the point of compression. Sometimes misalignment is so severe that the bones of the spinal column actually sever the spinal cord during an injury.
Herniated discs can also cause compression. Damage to the soft disc tissue between your vertebrae can cause the tissue to bulge out from between the bones, pressing on the spinal cord and causing the same sorts of issues.
Complete vs. Incomplete Spinal Cord Injuries
In some accidents, trauma to the spine and back can cause direct damage to the spinal cord. If the damage does not entirely sever the spinal cord in a “complete” spinal cord injury, the injury is said to be “incomplete.” This can still cause substantial motor function problems, but a complete spinal cord injury often causes permanent paralysis. Breaking your spine can also lead to these injuries, either from the same source of impact that injured the bones or because the bones themselves then sever the spinal cord during the injury.
Names for Spinal Cord Injuries by Location
Spinal cord injuries are often named by the section of the spine that is injured. This means that, from the top of your neck down to your coccyx (tailbone), spinal injuries could be referred to as cervical spinal cord injuries, thoracic spinal cord injuries, lumbar spinal cord injuries, or sacral spinal cord injuries. The higher up the injury occurs, the more of your body is affected by the injury, with quadriplegia and tetraplegia often resulting from cervical spinal cord injuries and paraplegia resulting from other injuries lower down the spine.
How to Sue for Spinal Cord Injuries in Houston, TX
Victims of accidents that involve spinal cord injuries can often sue for the harm they suffered. Spinal cord injuries can happen in many different kinds of accidents, but some of the most common causes of spinal cord injury are work-related injuries, falls from heights, slip and falls, and car accidents.
Many accidents involving falls – especially falls from heights – occur at work. If your employer is responsible for the injuries you faced, you could be entitled to file a lawsuit against them under Texas law if either of you opted out of workers’ compensation coverage and you can prove that the employer’s negligence led to your injuries. This can come in the form of negligent training or supervision, dangerous equipment or safety standards at work, or other issues.
Falls from heights and slip and fall accidents often see people land on their backs. While falls from heights are often more traumatic, slip and fall injuries can cause serious back and neck injuries that might lead to spinal cord damage. If the property owner or another party was responsible for the dangerous safety conditions that led to your accident, you can often sue them in a premises liability claim or some other form of negligence claim.
In car accident cases, at-fault drivers can be held liable for any injuries resulting from the crash. No one expects that when they cause a crash, they will cause paralysis or spinal cord injuries, but these are foreseeable injuries. Individual car and truck drivers can be sued for the accidents they cause on Texas roads, and trucking and delivery companies, bus companies, and other companies can often be held accountable for their drivers’ actions behind the wheel. Talk to a Houston personal injury lawyer about suing for these kinds of accidents.
Damages for Spinal Cord Injuries and Paralysis Accidents in Houston
After a spinal cord injury, your medical bills will often be quite expensive. If your injuries keep you from work, you could be unable to afford these bills and other basic support needs. Additionally, ongoing therapy and rehabilitation, as well as the mental effects of the injury, can take a serious toll on a person. These harms can all lead to various damages your lawyer can help you calculate and claim in an injury lawsuit.
Call Our Houston, TX Lawyer for Victims of Spinal Cord Injuries
If you were involved in an accident and suffered serious spinal cord injuries, call The Queenan Law Firm today. Our Houston spinal cord injury lawyer fights to help victims get compensation for serious injuries and other harms through civil injury lawsuits and settlements. For a free consultation on your spinal cord injury and accident case, call our personal injury attorneys today at (817) 476-1797.