According to Good Body, about two million Americans will suffer a back injury every year, with 80 percent of adults across the nation suffering at least one back injury during their lifetime. Many back injuries result from stressful postures in our daily lives, while others occur during an accident—often an automobile accident. While most people with a back injury recover within weeks or months, others will experience pain—often debilitating—for the remainder of their lives. If you’ve experienced a back injury after a car accident or another type of accident resulting from the negligence or carelessness of another, you may be unable to return to work due to your injuries. You may be unsure what to do for your health and financial future. Speaking to a Fairbanks back injury attorney from Ringstad Law Office can ensure you receive the medical treatments you need and a full and fair settlement for your injuries and other damages.
Why Choose a Fairbanks Back Injury Attorney from Ringstad Law Office, P.C.?
Finding a Fairbanks back injury attorney who truly cares about you, your injuries, and your future can be more complicated than you think. You need a personal injury attorney with extensive experience in personal injury and the knowledge and skills necessary to ensure you receive a full and fair settlement. Attorney Kenneth Ringstad is always eager to go toe to toe with a big insurance company. Ken understands how insurance companies work and how they want to pay as little as possible for any accident.
You need a full settlement to heal from your injuries properly and to ensure that the expenses you incurred as a result of the negligence of another don’t sink you financially. Ken will fight for you and your future. He is a compassionate, zealous advocate who will ensure you are not dealing with the aftermath of your accident alone.
What Types of Accidents Can Cause Back Injuries?
Many types of accidents can result in a back injury. However, back injuries often occur from automobile accidents (car, semi-truck, motorcycle, pedestrian, or bicycle) or a slip and fall due to a safety issue on another’s property. The impact of an automobile crash can be significant, even from what seemed like a minor fender bender. Neck and back trauma is the most commonly reported injury following an auto accident.
Depending on the speed both vehicles are traveling, the force of a car collision can equal as much as six tons; it is this tremendous force of moving vehicles that cause neck and back injuries. A slip and fall can also result in a back injury, depending on the way you land and the force with which you land. Following a back injury from an accident, you may experience immediate back pain, or the pain can come on later after the adrenaline rush from the accident has subsided. You may also experience tingling and numbness in your back, neck, or extremities from a back injury.
What Are the Different Types of Back Injuries After an Accident?
When you’re involved in an auto accident, as your car experiences the impact, your body is in motion until something stops your body— like your seat belt, airbag, steering wheel, or windshield. In a worst-case scenario, when no seatbelt was worn, your body may not stop until it hits the ground. Such violent motions can cause sprains, strains, fractures, or other severe injuries to your back. During an auto collision, the 33 vertebrae, 31 nerve roots, and 32 muscles in your neck and back can be damaged, causing short-term or long-term effects. Soft tissue injuries may not show up immediately, making it essential to seek medical attention immediately following your accident. Back injuries after a car accident include:
- Lumbar or thoracic vertebrae fractures
- Back strains from soft tissue damage to the tendons, which connect bones to muscles, and sprains which damage the ligaments that connect joints to bones or bones to bones
- Herniated discs occur when the inner part of the spinal disc pushes out through the outer ring
- Spondylolisthesis, which is vertebra displacement from a stress fracture that can potentially compress the spinal canal or nerves
- Facet joint injuries; the facet joints sit between spine bones and nerve roots, allowing you to bend or twist in different directions.
- Disc pain
- Degenerative spinal disorders
Symptoms of a Back Injury Following a Fairbanks Accident
If you have any of the following symptoms following an auto accident or any other type of accident, see a medical professional immediately:
- Muscle spasms, or twitching of a muscle that feels like a hard knot and can be extremely tender
- Burning, searing pain in your back that may move down the back and buttocks, through the back of one or both legs
- Stiffness or lack of flexibility and mobility
- Discomfort when walking or standing, along with a throbbing sensation when you attempt to perform daily tasks
- Numbness or tingling in the legs, feet, arms, or hands
The treatment for back pain following an accident will vary according to the type of injury, the injury’s location, and the injury’s severity. For mild back pain, gentle stretching exercises, anti-inflammatory OTC medications, and possibly a back brace can help the healing. You may require physical therapy, spinal surgery, or corticosteroid injections for more serious back pain.
How Do You Know if Your Back Injury is Serious?
You may be able to determine that your back injury is serious due to the level of pain or inability to move freely. Without seeing a medical professional, you can’t know how severe your back injury is without seeing a doctor. You should be medically checked out as soon as possible following your accident. You may think you are fine, but you may find out hours or even days later that you are far from fine.
What is the Average Settlement for a Back Injury?
The settlement you receive for your back injury will depend on how severe your back injury is and to what extent that injury prevents you from returning to work or engaging in your normal daily activities. If your injury limits your ability to work, your settlement will reflect an inability to work for months or years. It will also reflect which medical treatments will be required and how long you will be forced to continue them. In some cases, you may have surgery for your back pain and could have to undergo rehabilitative therapies for a very long time. You may also recover from your back injury—physical pain, emotional pain, and trauma.
Hire a Fairbanks Back Injury Attorney Near You
You have taken an important first step in protecting your future when you speak to a Fairbanks back injury attorney following your accident. A back injury after a car accident can be a serious issue that can prevent you from accomplishing daily tasks and leave you with pain that adversely affects your quality of life. Ringstad Law Office, P.C. can help you through this difficult time. Attorney Kenneth Ringstad will fight for you, your family, and your future from start to finish, never leaving you to handle an insurance company that may not want to pay you a full and fair settlement. Contact Ringstad Law Office today.
