Miami Personal Injury Lawyer Blog
With stories about motor vehicle accidents constantly in the news, it might surprise you to learn that traffic collisions are not the top cause of injuries in the US. Falls are the number one reason individuals seek medical treatment, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Every year, almost 8.6 million people visit hospital emergency rooms for care due to injuries from slip and falls. Tragically, around 44,680 people are killed in fall accidents annually.
Florida personal injury laws apply to slip and fall accidents, so you may be able to recover compensation if you were hurt. It is important to take advantage of all legal opportunities since your injuries can be life-changing. Besides physical pain, you may also endure emotional and financial losses. It is crucial that you trust a Miami slip and fall attorney for assistance with the process, especially if you suffered any of the following injuries from an accident.
Trauma to the Head
Stumbling, tripping, or sliding throws your entire body out of its regular movements, often leading your feet to slip out from under you. The violence of a fall could lead your head to hit the solid surface on the ground, but you could strike against any fixtures or objects on the way down. Some of the most common head injuries in a slip and fall include:
- Concussion;
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI); and,
- Penetrating head injuries when an object infiltrates the brain by piercing through the skull.
Ball and Socket Injuries
The unnatural, violent movement of your body can also lead to dislocations of your primary ball-and-socket joints — the hips, ankles, and shoulders. The dislocation itself is extremely painful, but it is also likely that a victim will suffer the same or similar injury. The initial trauma stretches ligaments and tendons beyond their limit, making them weaker and unable to hold the joint components together.
Spinal Cord Injuries
In a slip and fall accident, the victim’s torso may twist and contort as they try to gain stability or catch the fall. This can lead to compression of vertebrae on the spinal cord. An incomplete or complete spinal cord injury can lead to loss of function below the area of the injury, paraplegia, and quadriplegia.
Whiplash
The violence of a fall may thrust the victim’s head forward and backward, leading to trauma in the tissues around the shoulders, upper back, and neck. The resulting condition is whiplash, which involves soft tissue injuries to the tendons, ligaments, and muscles. Herniated and bulging discs are also examples of soft tissue injuries.
Consult With a Miami Slip and Fall Lawyer About Your Rights
You may be entitled to compensation for medical costs, lost wages, pain and suffering, and many other losses if you were hurt in an accident. To learn more about your rights, please contact Gerson & Schwartz, PA, at our offices in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, or West Palm Beach, FL. You can schedule a no-cost case review with a slip-and-fall attorney by calling (305) 371-6000 or visiting us online.
