Injuries resulting from a car, truck, pedestrian or other accident do not necessarily appear immediately. In some cases, the injuries do not develop for many years after the accident. The injuries themselves are often referred to as medical complications or complications, and include a variety of injuries that would not have occurred except for the accident.
Complications can even result in damages to parts of the body that were not injured in the accident. A knee injury, for example, could cause hip damage over time if the person was forced to walk for many years with a limp.
Other complications to other parts of the body from the initial injury include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Brain injury, even if considered minor, can cause changes in personality and behavior, sensitivity to certain medications and other disorders such as seizures and epilepsy.
- Injuries to eyes, which can lead to other optic disorders such as cataracts, detached retina, glaucoma, other inflammations, and, in extreme cases, partial or total blindness
- Injuries to joints, which can result in arthritis, as well as other weaknesses that tend to make the joint vulnerable to dislocation and future injury.
- Injuries to lungs, which can have an adverse effect on the lung’s capacity to have normal maintenance of oxygen in the blood, with the eventual possibility of heart attack, stroke, and/or brain injury.
- Injuries to muscles, which can result in long-term pain and weakness to the muscle, as well as subsequent contracting, or shortening, of the muscle restricting use and function.
- Injuries to reproductive organs, in both men and women, can lead to difficulty and/or inability to get pregnant or impregnate, and in serious cases, may cause actual sterility.
- Injuries to the urinary tract, which, if severe, can affect the kidneys to the point where if the patient takes certain medications, they will experience toxic effects from normal doses of drugs.
- Injuries to the urinary tract, which can lead to hypertension.
- Injuries to vital organs, that can make that specific body part more vulnerable to stress in the future, sometimes to the point of consequential failure, particularly in the case of a major organ such as the heart, lungs, liver, or kidneys.
- Interference with blood flow and blood supply, especially where there is extreme swelling, can cause gangrene, which may lead to the necessity of amputation.
- Paralysis, that often results in permanent medical conditions, such as urinary tract disorders, susceptibility to blood clots, vulnerability to embolisms, development of bed sores, and onset or exacerbation of osteoporosis.
- Physical problems with muscles or bones, that can eventually lead to arthritis in those same body parts as well as seemingly unrelated areas.
- Scar tissue, especially when it is extensive, will often be the cause of infection in various parts of the body that have sustained a primary injury.
- Shortened life expectancy, which can occur due to the fact that injured body parts are subsequently unable to tolerate normal stress and function after undergoing an injury from which total recovery is impossible.
- Infection, which can result from stresses in the body’s metabolism due to illness or injury which, in turn, can create interference with the normal functioning of other body parts.
When an Accident Injury Occurs, it is Critical to Understand and Future Conditions that May Be Suffered
In the course of seeking damages, an injured person will want to receive the maximum amount of damages to which they are entitled. For our clients, we focus not only on the damages that are already apparent but also the damages that are likely to result.
For example, if a person is disabled and must walk with a severe limp if doctors or other medical experts can testify that this limp will lead to long-term damage to other body parts such that future surgery will likely be required, the person will be entitled to compensation as a result. If it is likely that the totality of damage to their body will result in a shorter lifespan (which is typically the case in paralysis cases, for example), they are also entitled to additional damages as a result.
Once We Understand the Likely Long-Term Medical Complications of An Injury, We Seek to Recover Fully For Our Clients
It is not simply enough to claim that our clients may sustain future medical complications. In order to recover damages, we must prove that such damages are likely to result. To do this, we present evidence and testimony from doctors, health care providers, and financial experts.
If you’ve been injured, it’s important to understand the full scope of damages that are likely to be suffered, as you will not be allowed to “re-open” your case after a settlement or verdict has taken place.
If you retain our firm, we will carefully investigate your injuries and talk to your treating physician or others in the medical field so that we can understand any future medical complications that you may face, and so that we can seek to recover the full damages for these matters.
Call me today so that I can learn about your case and to schedule your free, no-obligation private consultation. I can explain the aspects concerning recovery, including damages and injuries sustained from medical complications.