Paralysis: A Catastrophic Injury
A catastrophic injury or illness usually occurs suddenly and without warning. Injuries may be considered catastrophic when they disrupt a person’s life and livelihood, or ability to earn a living. Management of catastrophic injuries is complex and may require the expertise of a team of health care professionals as the injured person moves from hospital to rehabilitation, and return to home and community.
Because of the financial burden of a catastrophic injury, it is nearly always required that the injured have an experienced injury attorney to investigate the claim. These attorneys work with several other specialists and with rehabilitation medication.
The goal of an attorney handling these matters is simple: to secure for the client the Best Possible Future.
Paralysis: Catastrophic Injury One.
Definition: “Complete loss of strength to an affected limb or muscle group.”
For an unharmed muscle to function correctly, it requires no broken nerve connection from the brain to any area of the muscle group. Any damage that reduces the brain’s ability to move that muscle group will cause muscle weakness. Complete loss of movement results in paralysis.
Initial slight weak can sometimes lead to paralysis. And, sometimes totally paralyzed limbs can regain complete strength.
Though a single muscle region can be affected by paralysis it is all more common for a body region to take on paralysis.
Quadriplegia occurs once the arms, legs, and chest have all become paralyzed.
Paraplegia occurs when both legs but not the arms are paralyzed, sometime affecting the chest also.
Hemiplegia is the paralysis of only half the body. Right or Left.
Paralysis may be caused by damage to the spinal cord or brain.
Brain damage can be caused by a number of things. Such causes could be a stroke or a disease or a tumor. Spinal cord damage is a little different and is usually caused by some sort or trauma like a car accident. Damage to the lower portion of the spinal cord can lead to paraplegia while damage to the upper portion can eventually lead to quadriplegia.
Some paralysis is treatable but not all. The only way known to treat paralysis is repairing the underlying nerves. This is done through the rehabilitation process which includes, physical therapy for rebuilding muscles, occupational therapy to help develop the skills again to perform everyday tasks such as bathing or getting clothed. Also included is respiratory therapy to help with breathing.
Legal consequences: In a lawsuit from an accident causing paralysis, an injury attorney may have to consult many of these specialized experts, in addition to medical doctors, to best understand what the future holds for a paralyzed accident victim and how best to present that person’s claim to a jury.
If the injury causes the injury to be unable to earn a living, then Medicare or Medicaid come into play. Most times, private insurance or Workers Comp will take care of this.