The Severity of Limb Loss After a Tragic Accident

Limb loss is a catastrophic injury that causes complications that may be just as serious as traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries. Limb loss is a tricky injury because it is like a double edged sword.

If a severely injured limb is not amputated, a patient may suffer from a serious infection. However, amputation injuries can also cause complications, like a lack of blood circulation. If you experienced an amputation injury or limb loss because of someone else’s negligence, contact a Los Angeles amputation injury lawyer at McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP.

What are amputation injuries?

If you have been involved in a serious accident and have lost function in a certain body part, you may need to have an amputation performed. Victims of car accidents, electrocutions, and explosions are common examples of people who have dealt with amputations. Sometimes the need for an amputation is not immediately noticeable. You may have been in the hospital for a few days and suffered from a severe infection afterwards. In any case, there are two types of amputations that may take place.

Medical professionals separate amputations based on the upper body and the lower body.

• Upper body amputations are amputations done to the fingers, arms, or wrists.
• Lower body amputations involve the ankles, legs, and toes.

Amputations can also be described as traumatic or surgical.

• A traumatic amputation may have to take place after a serious accident, such as a motorcycle crash or an injury while using a press machine.
• A surgical amputation happens once it is discovered that an injured body part cannot be remedied and so must be removed.

What is the surgical amputation process?

The approach that physicians take for an amputation depends on the damaged body part. For a leg or an arm to be removed, there are other parts of the body that must be stabilized for the process to be successful. Surgeons would be responsible for cutting through different bones, tendons, muscles and blood vessels. There are several complications that may occur, including the possibility of an infection. Depending on the complications and the affected body part, the amputation may take place in several stages.

What are the complications of limb loss?

There is a possibility that certain amputations may result in many complications, which ultimately may result in death. Cutting a body part off affects other parts of the body, from blood circulation to chronic pain. Uncontrollable pain is a constant side effect that many victims endure. Victims can still experience nerve pain long after their limb has been removed. Other side effects of limb loss include the following:

• Deep vein thrombosis (DVT)
• “Phantom limb” pain
• Heart attack
• Infections
• Pneumonia

In some instances, additional surgery might be required to alleviate pain or fix problems that develop following the initial amputation.

Am I entitled to compensation for my Los Angeles limb loss injury?

If your amputation happened due to the fault or negligence of another, you may have a right to file a claim for compensation. When a person has acted negligently and caused you to experience harm, you may have the right to seek compensation from that person. In a personal injury claim, that person has the responsibility to make you “whole” again. Holding that person financially responsible for your injuries is a way for that person to make you whole again following your accident.

In a personal injury claim, it is important to prove the negligence of the other person. The negligence of the other person determines how liable they will be for your injuries. Negligence is proven with four elements:

• Duty of care. The duty of care is the legal responsibility that another person has towards you. It usually consists of keeping you safe from some hazard.
• Breach of the duty of care. This element is proven when a person’s negligent actions violate their duty of care owed to you.
• Causation. The person’s negligent actions must be directly connected to the harm that was caused.
• Damages. This consists of the types of losses (financial and otherwise) that the person’s negligent actions have caused.

Another factor that potentially increases the amount of compensation you may be awarded is the nature and severity of your injuries. A traumatic amputation injury is considered a catastrophic injury. These injuries are permanent and thus the damages awarded may be higher to adequately compensate your living and medical expenses.

Why you need a Los Angeles personal injury lawyer

Once you make the decision to file a claim, you also want to find the most competent lawyer to represent you. A lawyer can protect you from insurance agents who want to seek your recovery and prevent you from receiving the compensation you deserve. A lawyer can ensure that your claim is concrete, and that no insurance agent can question its validity.

An experienced attorney can establish the severity of a defendant’s negligence. Insurance agents will argue that their client’s actions were not responsible for your amputation. Your lawyer knows how to present the right evidence to help you secure the compensation to which you are entitled.

If you have suffered a catastrophic injury like an amputation, it is important that you are justly compensated. At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, our lawyers go above and beyond to fight for our clients as if they were a member of our family. Call our office today at 310-474-1582 or fill out our contact form to schedule a free initial consultation.

Please note that this blog is not to be construed as legal advice. Because every case is fact-specific, you should consult directly with an attorney to obtain legal advice specific to your situation.