What Does a Spinal Injury Involve?
A spinal injury can be a very serious injury that is likely to have a lasting and significant impact on the individual in question. Spinal injuries are caused by an impact to the body that results in damage to the spinal cord or neck which can be life changing.
The spinal cord contains many nerves and spreads from the brain’s base to the bottom of your back. The spinal cord is responsible for delivering instructions from the brain to different parts of the body. The reason we are able to perceive pain and move our limbs is because of the messages sent through the spinal cord.
By sustaining a spinal injury, these ‘messages’ may not reach different parts of the body causing a complete or total loss of sensation and mobility below the injury. In less severe cases, it can still cause complications leading to permanent problems.
It is important that an individual who has suffered a spinal injury to have access to medical and rehabilitative treatment as soon as possible.
What are the symptoms of a spinal cord injury?
Back injuries in any type of accident can lead to a few common symptoms and conditions such as:
- Problems walking
- Loss of control of the bladder or bowels
- Inability to move the arms or legs
- Feelings of spreading numbness or tingling in the extremities
- Unconsciousness
- Headache
- Pain, pressure, and stiffness in the back or neck area
- Signs of shock
- Unnatural positioning of the head
What causes spinal injuries?
Spinal injuries are caused by a number of issues. Some of the main causes of spinal injuries can include:
- Road traffic collisions
- Workplace accidents
- Accidents abroad
- Slips, trips and falls
- Defective products
- Sports injuries
If your injuries are the fault of someone else, you might be able to make a compensation claim. To be successful you will need to prove that another party has a duty of care and that they were at fault for your accident.
Can I make a Personal Injury claim for a spinal injury?
If you are unfortunate to have been injured in an accident due to someone else’s fault or negligence, you may be able to make a personal injury claim for compensation.
The main criteria you will have to meet to be able to make a claim are:
- You must have sustained an injury at the fault or negligence of someone else.
- You were injured within the last 3 years.
You can also make a claim on behalf of a family member who is incapacitated.
What evidence do I need to prove negligence?
The key for a successful personal injury claim is clear evidence that establishes beyond doubt that the opponent’s negligence caused your injury.
This will include gathering evidence to support your back injury claim. Often the evidence you may need can include:
- The date, time and circumstances of your accident
- Documents related to any treatment you received
- Financial statements and documents
- Witness statements from the site of the incident
- CCTV or camera phone footage from scene of the incident
- Police/HSE reports and plans from where the incident occurred
You should seek medical attention as soon as you can, no matter how minor the back injury may appear initially. If you are unable to see your GP in person ask them for a telephone appointment instead.
To be able to make a claim known as compensation, we will need to show that the injury was caused by the accident you had and not a pre-existing issue. This is known as causation. GP and Hospital records will be very helpful in establishing causation.
If you want further advice on this topic, or you have been involved in an accident that has resulted in a spinal injury, then please contact our leading personal injury team on 0808 274 3173 or request a call back online.