Degenerative disc pain can negatively affect your life in several ways. With such an injury, you’ll find it significantly more challenging to complete everyday activities, work, and enjoy quality time with your family and friends. From the reduction in mobility and flexibility to the financial and emotional stress, a disc injury is life-altering and time-consuming. If your injury resulted from another party’s actions, the Law Offices of William F. Underwood, III, P.C., can help you pursue compensation for your losses.
Our Georgia degenerative disc injury lawyers provide top-notch legal representation and support for accident victims who suffer from spinal injuries. Contact us today for a free, no-obligation consultation, and learn how we can help you recover the compensation you need to move ahead with your life.
What Are Degenerative Disc Injuries?
Degenerative disc injuries like slipped or herniated discs cause painful, numbing sensations as fluid leaks from damaged discs and compromises their ability to support the spine.
A slipped disc can put pressure on your nerves, causing:
- Numbness
- Weakness
- Pain in your arms or legs
- Tingling sensations
You may experience one or more of these uncomfortable symptoms that can interfere with your ability to continue your daily life and activities. Degenerative disc injuries can prevent you from:
- Doing your job
- Advancing in your career
- Keeping up with hobbies or recreational activities
- Enjoying time with friends and family
Common Causes of Degenerative Disc Injuries
Degenerative disc injuries result from several root causes, including:
- Car accidents – Forceful impact from a severe car accident can disrupt your back, causing painful long-term injuries.
- Falls – The impact from a fall can compress your spine, causing your vertebrae to crush against each other, putting pressure on your discs and potentially rupturing and displacing them.
- Wear and tear – Repetitive movements that strain your spine and back muscles can accelerate the deterioration of your body’s natural spinal cushioning and increase your risk of chronic back pain. Degenerative disc injuries resulting from wear and tear are common in jobs where repetitive movements and heavy lifting are among the regular duties.
- Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) – This arthritic condition involves the breakdown of multiple discs, causing widespread pain, discomfort, and stiffness. Severe cases of DDD can worsen herniated disc pain and potentially cause spinal stenosis, which can further increase spinal nerve pain and damage. According to the Social Security Administration, DDD is a recognized disability, and you can potentially receive benefits, assuming your circumstances qualify.
Why You Need a Georgia Personal Injury Lawyer for a Degenerative Disc Claim
Demonstrating the effect a degenerative disc injury has on your life can be difficult. But you can benefit from legal help when pursuing compensation for a degenerative disc injury in Georgia. Look into hiring a personal injury lawyer who can help you:
- Understand Georgia law – The statute of limitations for Georgia personal injuries is generally two years. Still, factors such as potential workers’ compensation claims or the possible involvement of government entities can affect the timeline, and your attorney can help you avoid missing the window to file your claim.
- Demonstrate causation – Drawing a definite link between an event and your injury is one of the biggest hurdles facing degenerative disc injury claims. Your lawyer can review all the information about your injury and circumstances and build a case showing how the injury impacts your health and life.
- Avoid claim denial – Degenerative disc injuries often require ongoing medical treatment, making them more expensive than some other injuries. Watching medical bills pile up is stressful, and your attorney can reduce this stress by working to support your claim against opposition from insurance companies.
Demonstrating a link between a work or auto accident and a back injury involving degenerative disc disease (DDD) is something the Law Offices of William F. Underwood, III, P.C. has extensive experience with. We can work with your doctors to prove causation or send you to new doctors to help prove it.
Everyone after approximately the age of 40 develops degenerative disc disease. This makes the word “disease” a bit of a misnomer. because you can have it and be asymptomatic, which means you’re not experiencing any pain or symptoms. Then, there may be a triggering event like a work accident or auto accident which then leads you to become symptomatic. However, depending on how your MRI looks, it is very common for insurance carriers to deny that your pain and symptoms are related to your accident and allege it is all a pre-existing condition. Don’t fall for this. Our attorneys work with medical professionals every day to prove that work and auto accidents aggravated any pre-existing DDD our clients may have had.
Proving a Degenerative Disc Injury Case
Demonstrating the severity of your injuries is key to a successful Georgia degenerative disc injury claim. You’ll need to:
- Collect Medical Opinions – You’ll likely need to get the medical opinions of your doctor, a specialist, and potentially a third-party medical expert to establish a medical consensus about your injury and its impact on your ability to work.
- Provide Medical History—You might need to include your previous medical information before the accident to further demonstrate the drastic reduction in your health and capabilities due to the injury.
- Document Losses – You’ll need to show the financial, physical, mental, and emotional losses caused by your injury by documenting your medical expenses, lost income, and the emotional distress you’ve endured.
- Explain Your Limitations – You’ll want to demonstrate how your injury interferes with your ability to perform specific job requirements or functions. Proving this may include undergoing independent evaluations or assessments and comparing your capabilities to your job’s demands.
Compensation for Spinal Injuries in Georgia
Degenerative disc injuries can require significant medical treatment to address, putting financial strain and additional stress on you and your family.
A Georgia attorney can provide legal help for spinal injuries and pursue compensation for your:
- Medical bills – Physical or occupational therapy, doctor appointments, prescription medications, surgical expenses, rehabilitation, and diagnostic testing
- Lost wages – Time missed due to injury and lost benefits like PTO, potential bonuses, or possible promotions can factor into your calculations
- Loss of future earning potential – Your degenerative disc injury’s impact on long-term earning potential based on occupation and experience
- Pain and suffering – The emotional trauma of isolating pain, depression, and anxiety
- Loss of enjoyment of life – How your injury limits your enjoyment of hobbies, physical activities, or other interests
Choosing the Right Lawyer
When it comes to choosing the right personal injury lawyer for your claim, there are a few crucial factors to consider, including:
- Prior experience – Thoroughly research personal injury attorneys and find ones with specific experience handling degenerative disc injuries. Their prior experience is crucial to understanding the specifics of your case and their ability to work toward a favorable outcome for you.
- Client testimonials – Read testimonials from previous clients, consider their experience and how their attorney helped them, and compare them to what you’re looking for.
- Previous track record – While a lawyer’s previous success doesn’t guarantee the same outcome in your case, you can evaluate their accomplishments when making a decision.
Contact an Experienced Georgia Degenerative Disc Injury Lawyer
If you’re dealing with back pain, discomfort, or stiffness from a workplace or accident injury, you need a degenerative disc injury attorney in Georgia. Get the legal help you need for your recovery by contacting the Law Offices of William F. Underwood, III, P.C. for a free, no-obligation consultation. Learn how our law firm can help you pursue the full and fair compensation you deserve.
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