QuestionIn March of 09, I was stuck by a truck while crossing at a crosswalk with the right of way. The approaching vehicle was turning left from a one way street. Approximate 20 MPH when struck.
I had looked behind me to see if vehicles were approaching and did not see any. As I was 2/3 across the street, I was struck on my right upper quad and fell on my left shoulder, hit my head.
resulted in a large contusion, loss of consciousness, abdominal contusions and a permanent AC separation/sprain, low back strain. This was a workers comp. claim because I was in the course of my work day. I am a Home health employee and provide home visits full time.
2 wks after the accident, I went to the ER with severe pain, difficulty breathing, chest pain with abnormal ECG. I was placed in a cardiac pathway at the hospital with neg findings for cardiac enzyme, diagnosed with an inactive gallbladder, no gallstones found, called it bileary dyskenesia. I had an EF of 7% function in my gallbladder. I obtained a second opinion after 1 month later and my gallbladder had improved to 20% EF. I did not have it removed.
No MD has specifically related this gallbladder trauma to the accident, however, the blunt forced trauma was in the region where the gallbladder is. I have received phs.therapy for my shoulder and back strains and received a rating of 2 for my shoulder and 0 for my back. I still continue with pain in my shoulder with work outs and swimming ( I have recently started) The ortho MD told me that my prognosis will result in possible increased arthritis to the ac joint separation and I will likely have a perm.seperation in my ac joint. I have not had any problems with my gallbladder prior to this accident and have not had any symptoms since my hospitalization.
My question:
What is the value of settlement for this type of injury? I don't know if my shoulder will ever be back to 100%? I have to be able to lift pt's for my job now and in the future.
It's been approx 6 mo. since my injury. Thank you for your time
AnswerHi Jackie,
It must have been quite a shock to get hit so suddenly, without any kind of warning. I hope that your injuries do heal, but I am worried that you are not getting very good care in terms of your traumatic brain injury.
This could be the most serious and lasting injury, but your doctors have ignored sending you for evaluation. I am going to give you a list of symptoms of what we call post-concussive syndrome. If you were to ask yourself and family, friends, and co-workers to go over the list with you, I am willing to bet that you will recognize some of these symptoms in your behavior in the past six months.
Beyond that, I am also concerned that your other significant injury has no medical link to the accident: "No MD has specifically related this gallbladder trauma to the accident." If there is a chance of making this connection, then let an attorney get that for you.
As for your question regarding valuation, how would I have any idea on the value if what I have written above is true? A major injury not examined and no connection made between your other major complaint and the accident.
Under these conditions, only an attorney can help with your claim. Dr. Settlement is an online expert of insurance claims on a self-help basis. BUT, this is NOT a case that I would EVER recommend for the victim to do it on her own. A good attorney will see that your traumatic brain injury is properly evaluated by a competent psychologist or neuropsychologist, AND she will also work with your doctors or some other medical expert to tie your major physical injury to the accident. Without the attorny's work on this, you WILL NEVER EVER prevail on your existing proof. The attorney knows how she can get the doctors to make the proper connection to the accident being the cause.
OK, then Jackie, let's move on to your traumatic brain injury and post concussive syndrome.
You get the point: OF COURSE you hit your head, and hence, I am going to give you more of my time to sort thru this thing. My main focus is going to be on the head injury, because THAT most likely going to be a MAJOR factor in your claim.
Likely you know by now that Doctor Settlement teaches auto accident victims how to settle their own insurance injury claims via legal forms and self help information at my website, www.SettlementCentral.Com. BUT when you finish reading this, I think you, too, will agree that YOU NEED AN ATTORNEY ASAP.
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#1. Actual head trauma: YOU MUST GET A NEUROPSYCH EXAM ASAP IF ANY SYMPTOMS below are manifesting now.
How hard did you hit your head? It sounds like a pretty hard whack. So, let’s first address that topic of the most significant potential injury, your traumatic brain injury. Research that term, and especially post concussive syndrome and you will see some of the symptoms of that condition. My bet is that you DO HAVE A MODERATE BRAIN INJURY.
Let’s first examine what is a concussion and what is a loss of consciousness. You DID HAVE A CONCUSSION, that much is for sure, since you hit your head. So traumatic brain injury is in play in your claim since you suffered a brain concussion.
Post-concussion syndrome, also known as post concussive syndrome or PCS, is a set of symptoms that a person may experience for weeks, months, or even years after a concussion, a mild form of traumatic brain injury. As many as 50% of patients who have experienced concussion have PCS, and some sources say as many as 90% of patients experience post concussion symptoms. People who have had concussions may experience physical, mental, or emotional symptoms. Symptoms can appear immediately or weeks to months after the initial injury.
Physical symptoms can include:
• headache
• dizziness
• impaired balance
• nausea and/or vomiting
• fatigue or sleepiness
• inability to sleep
• decreased libido
• sensitivity to noise or light
• ringing in the ears
• double or blurred vision
• decreased sense of taste, smell, or hearing
Emotional symptoms may include:
• irritability
• anxiety
• restlessness
• depression
• lack of emotion
• emotional lability or mood swings
• lack of ability to tolerate stress or alcohol
• aggression
Cognitive or mental symptoms can include:
• amnesia or difficulty remembering things
• confusion or impaired cognition
• impaired judgment
• slowed cognitive processing
• difficulty with abstract thinking
• difficulty concentrating
• decrease in work performance
• decrease in social skills
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#2. TMJ—temporomandibular joint syndrome: possible source for any HEADACHES.
This is another term I want you to research. When an accident victim strikes her head, there is a good possibility that the disc in the condyle, or jaw joint disc, can be displaced. One of the consequences of jaw joint displacement is headaches. All too often in my practice, the doctors treated headaches as having originated from cervical problems, when in fact, they were due to a TMJ.
http://www.lectlaw.com/med/med04.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temporomandibular_joint_disorder
http://www.tmjdoctorofmaryland.com/
There are two at-home ways to see if your jaw joint is moving. First, find the spot in front of the little lobes on the middle of your ears. These are called “tragus”: http://www.infovisual.info/03/048_en.html
Now, put your fingers just in front of the tragus and over the jaw joint and open and close your mouth. If the disc is far out of place, you will feel a click. Better is for someone to stand behind you as you are seated and perform the same test. That person can feel the click if your jaw joint disc is far out of place.
WHAT TO DO ABOUT REFERRALS: If you feel that you do have any of these symptoms and they are of some significance, I WOULD INSIST UPON TREATMENT for them ASAP. It is best to get your general practitioner to refer you, but you can self-refer if you have to. Your attorney can also be a source of information on good specialists. Here is what you would need: a neuropsychologist to test and to treat the mild brain injury. That is where the big mental help will come from, and of course that is where the BIG INSURANCE SETTLEMENT DOLLARS come from also.
As for the TMJ, a dentist who specializes in that field would be a lot better than an ordinary dentist. The TMJ specialist is adept at diagnosis and treatment, and of course, at making records that will help in making a good insurance settlement. Still, with all the work your dentist is doing, maybe she can diagnose TMJ and send you out for treatment.
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#3. Get experienced legal help. Finding a good attorney can be difficult, but here is one tip: make sure that the attorney is a member of her state trial lawyers association http://www.settlementcentral.com/links.php
AND you MUST HAVE an attorney who has EXPERIENCE on brain injury and TMJ cases. Insist upon that information being furnished over the phone before you EVER go in for an appointment.
I hope that you do follow through as I am suggesting, Jackie, because you DO need to get some kind of psychological workup and an acknowledgement by the doctors that your physical problems were caused by that trauma.. AND this is NOT a case that the layman can handle on her own.
Best wishes for a smooth and quick recovery from your many injuries.
I trust that my time here has produced some information that has been of value to you, and thus I would respectfully request that you take the time to locate the FEEDBACK FORM on this site and leave some feedback for me.
Best Wishes,
Dr. Settlement, J.D. (Juris Doctor)
http://www.SettlementCentral.Com
