Nerve Damage Injuries
Helping Nerve Damage Injury Victims
Nerve damage can be one of the most painful injuries that an individual can suffer from, and the overall severity of chronic nerve pain can lead to a lot of other emotional and mental issues as well. Nerve damage can also lead to the improper functioning of a person’s limbs and organs, which can have ripple effects throughout the entire body.
Nerve damage injuries often make it hard for victims to perform within their jobs, provide for their family, maintain relationships, and successfully maneuver through general everyday activities.
If you or a family member has suffered nerve damage as a result of an accident, a side effect from a prescribed medication, or a botched medical surgery, then you may very well be entitled to a personal injury lawsuit to hold the liable parties accountable. Our team of personal injury experts has the knowledge and experience in terms of helping you fully prove the existence and severity of your nerve injuries, which can be one of the most challenging aspects of this type of personal injury litigation.
The Siler & Ingber legal team has been helping injury victims for over 20 years, and our case results speak for themselves. So if you or a loved one has suffered from nerve damage of any type that was due to someone else’s negligence, reach out to us for a free case review so one of our experts can go over the details of your situation and help formulate the very best strategy towards obtaining your rightful, fair compensation.
The Three Types of Nerves
There are three different types of nerves within our bodies, and each nerve type performs unique crucial functions. The three types of nerves include:
- Autonomic nerves: These nerves control all of the voluntary, as well as the partially voluntary, movements throughout the entire body. This includes things like blood pressure, digestion, heart rate, temperature regulation, etc.
- Motor nerves: Motor nerves control all of our voluntary movement, and they do this by instantaneously sending messages to our brains, through our spinal cords and into our muscles.
- Sensory nerves: These nerves relay information from our skin to our brain and spinal cord, and they are what help us feel temperature, pain, tickling, numbness, etc.
What is Neuropathy?
Neuropathy is another word for “nerve damage”, and it refers to any kind of damage within the body’s peripheral nervous system, which includes every nerve that extends outside of the spinal cord and brain.
Our peripheral nerves run throughout our entire body, including our muscle tissue and vital organs. When someone is suffering from a form of neuropathy, they can be enduring a group of affected nerves or even just a single nerve. The overall severity of neuropathy within an accident victim will always be determinant upon the overall severity of the injury.
Common Causes of Neuropathy
Nerve damage will many times be noticed after an accident as a symptom of a different type of injury. Although treating these original issues can help with the overall effects of nerve damage, the lasting effects can persist for long periods of time until a comprehensive neuropathy treatment plan is instilled.
Neuropathy can potentially be caused by a whole array of health issues, but some more common causes include the following:
- Diabetes
- Infection
- Disease
- Cancer
- Trauma
Some of the common causes of such serious nerve-damaging trauma include:
- Car accidents
- Sports injuries
- Workplace injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Herniated disc(s)
- Burn injuries
- Gunshot wounds
- Surgical and dental errors
- Cuts and serious abrasions
- Electrical shock
- Torn tendons/broken bones
- And much more…
Symptoms of Neuropathy
Neuropathy is an all-encompassing nerve damage health issue that affects all autonomic, motor and sensory nerves. Each type of nerve has different symptoms of the damage, including the following:
Autonomic Neuropathy
- Fainting and dizziness as a result of blood pressure fluctuation
- Intolerance to heat
- Constipation or diarrhea
- Rapid heart rate
- Noticeable reduction in sweating
- Erectile dysfunction
Motor Neuropathy
- Muscle atrophy
- Muscle tremors
- Muscle weakness
- Poor coordination
- Muscle cramps
- Muscle paralysis
Sensory Neuropathy
- Loss of coordination
- Numbness
- Loss of ability to feel pain, or hypersensitivity to pain
- Tingling sensations
- Shooting, burning pains
- Lack of ability to feel changes in temperature
- Changes in hair, nail and skin conditions
- Foot and leg infections, and ulcers
Types of Neuropathy that Result from Accidents
There are three main types of neuropathy that tend to occur within accident victims, including:
- Mononeuropathy: This is what occurs when only a single nerve is damaged, and this typically will occur when an injury like a herniated disc ends up compressing a singular nerve. Some of the common symptoms of this form of neuropathy include numbness or tingling in the feet or hands.
- Polyneuropathy: This is when multiple nerve groups are affected, which subsequently can affect multiple areas of an individual’s body. This type of neuropathy will typically occur within one side of the body, depending on where the injury originated, and the symptoms are numerous. Some common symptoms include numbness, dizziness, a burning sensation in extremities and a lack of coordination. Polyneuropathy symptoms tend to be most prevalent within an accident victim’s feet.
- Neuritis: Neuritis is caused by the overall inflammation of a nerve, which can be the result of a nerve being compressed due to a leg or foot injury that ends up cutting off a victim’s blood supply. Some of the common symptoms include a loss of reflexes, numbness, tingling in extremities, loss of muscle tissue and general pain.
Treating Nerve Damage
The Foundation for Peripheral Neuropathy (PNRR) has collected a ton of data in recent years that indicate just how many people are undergoing nerve damage treatment in the United States. Part of the reason why so many people are experiencing nerve damage is that it takes a very long recovery time to see these types of symptoms subside.
The regeneration process of torn or damaged nerves is always very slow, but there are many treatments that medical professionals utilize to help stimulate the regeneration process and catalyze the nerve damage recovery process so it takes less time. Some of the common medical treatments of nerve damage include:
- Pain Management Therapy: This may mean that your doctor will prescribe you a certain medication regimen to help reduce the overall nerve inflammation and discomfort you may be experiencing. This type of treatment is always going to be a necessary step towards restoring functionality and getting you back to your normal way of living faster.
- Electrical Nerve Stimulation: This treatment entails medical professionals sending gentle electric currents throughout your damaged nerves in order to stimulate regeneration. This procedure is known to help cut down on recovery time, and it also helps to alleviate pain.
- Surgical Repair: There aren’t many doctors can do in terms of surgically repairing damaged nerves, but what they can do is perform a procedure on any other injury that may be causing or worsening neuropathy. This includes surgery on conditions like a herniated disc, which many times can help alleviate neuropathy symptoms.
Contact a Nerve Damage Injury Lawyer in New York
Nerve damage always takes a very long recovery time, and there are some instances in which nerve damage is irreversible, which will subsequently put permanent changes on your quality of life and overall future. There’s no doubt about it that insurance companies will try to minimize the compensation for your nerve damage injury because it can be difficult to prove, but if your nerve damage was ultimately caused by someone else’s negligence, intentional act or carelessness, you’ll have good standing to pursue a personal injury lawsuit.
To find out more about your legal options and rights, contact us today so we can put you in touch with one of our experienced nerve damage attorneys. Siler & Ingber, LLP has been helping nerve damage victims for over 20 years and we full-heartedly believe that you have every right to maximum compensation for all of your damages, and we won’t rest until you’ve received the largest settlement possible.