Philadelphia Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer
Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) affects 10,000 people each year. Any injury to the spinal cord resulting in loss or impairment of sensation or function (mobility) is defined as SCI. Trauma (auto accidents, etc) or disease (degenerative) may lead to SCI and cause temporary or permanent changes in sensation or function. SCI may be complete or incomplete. These terms are defined as total loss of sensation/function or partial loss, respectively.
Medical professionals define SCI by the area of the spine affected, according to the cervical (upper), thoracic (midback), and lumbar (lower back) sections and the specific vertebrae. For example, a neck (cervical) injury to the fifth vertebrae would be referred to as a C-5 injury.
Generally speaking, neck injuries will lead to paralysis of all limbs (quadriplegia) while thoracic injuries cause paralysis to the lower limbs only (paraplegia). Both areas have variations in the amount of dysfunction, depending on the severity of the injury. An incomplete cervical injury can leave the patient with some hand use, while a complete injury at C-4 can require the patient to be on a ventilator. Thoracic injuries can leave the arms functional but interfere with walking, bowel and bladder control, and sexual function. Other functions that can be affected are blood pressure, body temperature, and pain levels.
The higher the injury on the spine, the greater the area of the body potentially affected. Neck injuries can lead to quadriplegia (impairment of four limbs) while midback and lower back injuries can lead to paraplegia (legs impaired). In addition to limb impairment, bowel, bladder, sexual and other functions may be affected. In the weeks and months immediately following SCI, symptoms may appear more severe than they turn out to be with time. This is due to swelling of the spinal cord which may mimic more severe permanent injury but dissipates once swelling goes down. There is currently no cure for the permanent aspects of SCI, though therapy and other treatments can make some difference. Stem cell treatments may hold promise for the future.
If you or a loved one is in need of legal assistance, call Heavens Law Offices at 1-866-HEAVLAW, submit a free online consultation, or contact us. The initial consultation is free of charge, and if we agree to handle your case, we will work on a contingency fee basis, which means we get paid for our services only if there is a monetary recovery of funds. In many cases, a lawsuit must be filed before an applicable expiration date, known as a statute of limitations. Please call right away to ensure that you do not waive your right to possible compensation.