Colorado Spinal Cord Lawyers

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SPINAL CORD INJURIES?

A spinal cord injury often causes permanent changes to a victim’s strength, sensation, and body functions below the site of the injury. Damage to any part of the spinal cord or spinal canal nerves can affect the way your body functions and processes stimuli. Many scientists are optimistic that advances in medical research will someday make completely repairing spinal cord injuries possible.

In the meantime, medical professionals divide spinal cord injuries into specific categories. This categorization not only helps doctors treat their patients more efficiently, but also helps patients understand the true extent of their injuries.

After a spinal cord injury, your ability to control your limbs depends on two factors: the place of your injury along your spinal cord and the severity of the injury itself. There are four sections of the spinal cord that are most commonly affected by spinal cord injuries; each section protects a different group of nerves that control the body. Since the types and severity of spinal cord injuries can depend on what section of the spine is injured, medical experts typically use these four sections to classify injuries.

These four spinal cord sections include the following:

Cervical Spinal Cord

Cervical spinal cord injuries affect the head and neck region above the shoulders. The medical community typically considers these types of injuries the most severe.

Thoracic Spinal Cord

Thoracic spinal cord injuries affect the upper chest, mid-back, and abdominal muscles. Arm and hand function is usually normal with this level of spinal cord injury.

Lumbar Spinal Cord Injuries

Lumbar spinal cord injuries affect the hips and legs. Individuals with lumbar spinal cord injuries may need a wheelchair or leg braces to function with this type of injury.

Sacral Spinal Cord Injuries

Sacral spinal cord injuries affect the hips, back of the thighs, buttocks, and pelvic organs. Individuals with sacral spinal cord injuries are usually able to walk but may suffer other medical complications.

The severity of your injury, commonly referred to as the completeness, is usually classified as either complete or incomplete. A complete injury occurs if a victim loses all motor and sensory function below the spinal cord injury. In contrast, an incomplete injury is one where the patient retains some motor or sensory function; there are varying degrees of incomplete injuries, unlike complete ones.

Ultimately, the medical treatment and legal remedies available to you may vary depending on the severity and location of your spinal cord injury. Categorizing your injuries can be difficult without professional help. If you or a loved one sustained a spinal cord injury, you should contact a group of Colorado spinal cord lawyers as soon as possible, for an attorney may be able to help you seek compensation for your injury and subsequent hardships.

HOW DO SPINAL INJURIES HAPPEN IN COLORADO?

A devastating accident can happen anytime and anywhere, many without any warning. Colorado accidents can lead to severe spinal cord injuries that can detrimentally impact a victim’s quality of life. Many spinal cord injuries can permanently prevent an individual from working or enjoying life as they did before the accident.  

Although spinal cord injury from any kind of accident is possible, some accident types are more prone to damaging the spine than others. Some common accidents in Colorado that result in spinal cord injuries include, but are not limited to:

• Automobile accidents
• Motorcycle accidents
• Pedestrian accidents
• Boating or aviation accidents
• Sports injuries
• Construction accidents
• Slip and fall accidents
• Dog attacks
• Defective products
• Wrongful deaths
• Premises liability accidents

In Colorado, automobile accidents are the leading type of accident; last year in the state of Colorado, there were over 25,000 automobile accidents that resulted in injuries. Spinal cord injuries are just one of many types of devastating injuries that Colorado residents sustain in car crashes every year. If you or your loved one was in an accident and now suffer from a debilitating spinal cord injury, you should contact a firm of local Colorado spinal cord attorneys as soon as possible. A local attorney may be able to help you assess your accident and allocate fault accordingly.

can i file a claim for my spinal cord injury?

If you were hurt in a Colorado accident and sustained a spinal cord injury, you may be able to file a legal claim in court seeking compensation for your injuries. While your ability to file will depend on a variety of factors, including the specifics of your accident, you have many options available to you.

Local statutes and laws can vary by jurisdiction; thus, your filing requirements will vary also. In order to seek compensation in Colorado, an injured plaintiff must prove that another party was intentionally or negligently responsible for the accident that caused their injuries.

Colorado courts commonly use negligence statutes to determine spinal cord injury cases. If you were injured and are seeking compensation, you must prove that the defendant owed you a duty and that their breach of that duty led to your injuries. Ultimately, if you can prove that you were injured by their negligent behavior or failures, you may be able to recover in court.

There are many other factors that contribute to your ability to recover for your spinal cord injury. These factors can range from the defendant’s actions, your mitigation efforts, and the overall damage caused by the incident.

You should also be sure to pay attention to your local court’s statute of limitations for personal injury suits; in Colorado, personal injury plaintiffs generally have two years from the date of injury to bring a lawsuit in court, so if you fail to file within this set time period, you may lose your right to file altogether. The laws that govern spinal cord injury and accidents cases can be dense and difficult to understand, so if you or your loved one was involved in an accident and sustained a spinal cord injury, contact an as soon as possible.

CALL ZINDA LAW GROUP’S COLORADO SPINAL CORD LAWYERS FOR HELP

Spinal cord injuries are some of the most complex health conditions to understand, treat, and litigate. The spinal cord is primarily responsible for the transmission of signals from the brain to the body, motor reflexes, and sensory information. Given the critical role that the spinal cord plays in the human body, any damage to it should be taken seriously and addressed immediately.

Spinal cord injuries not only inflict serious hardship into a victim’s life, but also into the lives of their friends and loved ones. If you were involved in an accident where you sustained a spinal cord injury, you should contact a lawyer who handles accident and injury cases as soon as possible. An experienced Colorado attorney will be able to help you assess liability, allocate fault, and seek compensation for your injuries accordingly.

At Zinda Law Group, our compassionate injury lawyers in CO want to help you find a way to relieve some of the burden your family has been bearing ever since the accident; the best way we can do that is by using the knowledge and resources we have available to us to help you pursue the highest compensation possible. Zinda Law Group provides personalized, quality consultation about the specifics of personal injury legal claims. The sooner you contact our office, the better we may be able to serve you.

If you or a loved one sustained a spinal cord injury in Colorado, call Zinda Law Group at (800) 863-5312 for a 100% free consultation. You don’t owe us anything unless we win your case. That’s our No Win, No Fee Guarantee.

Meetings with attorneys are available by appointment only.