Southern California Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer

Southern California Spinal Cord Injury Attorney

A back or spinal cord injury can forever change the course of your life forever. Spinal cord injury (SCI) results from any type of trauma or injury to the nerve fibers attached to the spinal cord. Such injuries are a result of falls, motor vehicle accidents, sports injuries, and other violence to the spine.

Depending upon the extent of the damage, symptoms can vary widely, from pain, to numbness, tingling and loss of sensation, muscle weakness or spasticity (exaggerated reflex or rigidity), or in severe cases, paralysis.

Without help, a spinal cord injury can severely decrease your quality and enjoyment of life.  Because of the significant cost of medical treatment and rehabilitation, those who have suffered these types of injuries should contact a Riverside spinal cord injury attorney.

Basis Anatomy of the Spine

The spinal cord is a long, thin, cylinder-shaped bundle of nerve fibers and connecting tissue that is encased in the spine. It connects nearly all parts of the body to the brain, making up the central nervous system (CNS). It consists of 31 segments: 8 cervical, 12 thoracics, 5 lumbar, 5 sacral, and 1 coccygeal. From each segment of the cord, a pair of spinal nerves (sensory and motor) transmit signals between the brain and the rest of the body.

The spinal cord is responsible, then, for serving as a conduit for information to travel up and down the spine and coordinating certain reflexes. When it has been injured, there will be a disruption of those functions.

Symptoms of Spinal Cord Injury

According to Medline, symptoms of SCI will depend upon the location and extent of the damage to the spine and its impact on the cord itself. Symptoms may not always be immediately apparent, as internal bleeding or swelling and pressure on the cord from an injured spine may increase with time.

These injuries can be the result of a car accident, slip, and fall, or even a work injury.
The severity of the injury is classified as levels of “completeness” and can include:

• Complete. If nearly all sensation (sensory) and all ability to control movement (motor) are lost below the spinal cord injury
• Incomplete. If there is some motor or sensory function below the affected area, the injury is classified as incomplete. There will be varying degrees of incomplete injury.

Scientists are hopeful that they will be able to repair damage to the spinal cord in the future, but currently, injuries are often permanent.

When a spinal cord injury results from an accident caused by the negligence of others, insurance coverage alone may not be enough to fully compensate the victim, especially since insurance companies are not on your side.

Even if you suffered a serious and disabling spinal cord injury, these companies will almost certainly offer you less in settlement than you need and deserve. The law offices of Brent A. Duque offers sound legal advice and aggressive legal representation in all Riverside personal injury claims and lawsuits resulting in serious injuries to the back, spine, and spinal cord, including:

• Severe spinal cord injury resulting in paralysis, paraplegia, or quadriplegia
• Back injuries such as disc herniation and resulting nerve impingement
• Soft tissue injury resulting in chronic back pain

Our dedicated staff is responsive to each client’s unique needs and concerns. We are committed to going the extra mile for each individual and family we represent, providing 24-hour availability and firm-wide dedication to our clients.

For a free consultation, please contact us today at 1-877-241-9554. You will discuss your case with an experienced Riverside spinal cord injury lawyer who will offer you expert legal advice and aggressively pursue the maximum compensation available to you under the law.

Our office has successfully handled hundreds of accident cases over the years, including:

• Wrongful Death
• Motorcycle Accidents
• Trucking Accidents
• Dog Bites
• Premises Liability
• Construction Accidents
• Burn Injury
• Medical Malpractice
• Elder Abuse and Neglect
• Brain Injuries

If you have any other questions about spinal cord injury treatment, call us or visit the National Spinal Cord Injury Association website.