In most cases shoulder injury will not have been caused by a car accident however there is a significant proportion that is a direct result of motor vehicle collisions. Road traffic accidents are a major cause of traumatic injury and represent more than half of all cases handled by personal injury solicitors. If you have been injured in a car accident and you want to make a compensation claim for personal injury and loss just complete the contact form, email our lawyers offices or use the solicitors helpline. Our shoulder injury solicitors offer advice at no cost without further obligation. If our shoulder injury solicitors deal with your claim it will be on a no win no fee basis, compensation is paid in full and you do not have to fund or finance your car accident compensation claim.
If you are experiencing pain and can answer yes to any of the questions below then you should seek qualified medical attention from your local doctor who may refer you to an orthopaedic surgeon for assessment :-
This problem is a frequent consequence of motor vehicle collisions and workplace accidents especially those involving lifting heavy items. In both of these cases it is likely that a third party will be wholly or partially responsible in negligence and if that is the case then it is advisable to see a lawyer in order to investigate the possibility of a shoulder injury claim for compensation.
There can be some quite serious damage caused to this part of the body which may cause long-term problems and disability resulting in substantial financial losses mostly relating to loss of future wages and loss of lifestyle. If this problem was caused as a result of an accident that was not wholly your fault then you should start a shoulder injury claim however there are time limits and you should not delay taking legal advice.
The general rule on time limits is that a claim for personal injury should be settled or proceedings should have been issued in a court of law within 3 years of the event giving rise to the injury. There are exceptions to the general rule and in addition the court does have a discretion, which is rarely used, to extend the available time :-
Injuries that are commonly associated with this area of the body, often caused in a traumatic accident include :-
If you have suffered physically, mentally or financially, you should consider making an accident compensation claim. For telephone advice at no cost from specialist personal injury solicitors just call the helpline. Our shoulder injury solicitors will assess the strength of your claim and will advise you on your potential award of compensation without any further obligation.
Shoulder injuries result in 750,000 visits to the doctor each year. Shoulder injuries include sprains or strains of the shoulder, shoulder dislocation, and shoulder separation. The shoulder joint is often injured in a fall, sports injury, overuse injury, overhand injury such as in tennis, pitching and weight lifting, or motor vehicle injuries. Rotator cuff injuries are the most common type of injury seen.
The shoulder involves three bones: the scapula, the clavicle and the humerus. The rotator cuff is the cuff of ligaments that surround the joint and allow it to safely move during its wide range of motion. It can move in a nearly complete circle vertically around the joint and can move outward to the vertical and across the body to a certain degree.
Common shoulder injuries can involve the muscles, tendons, bones, and ligaments of the shoulder joint. There can be sudden shoulder injuries or injuries from repetitive and intensive athletic training. Playing through the pain can aggravate the problem and make the problem much worse. Shoulder injuries can be divided into instability of the joint, when the joint is in danger of dislocation. Pain will happen when the arm is lifted and it will feel as though the joint is moving out of its normal position.
Impingement of the shoulder means that muscles rub across the acromion, part of the scapula. Excessive overhead movement can cause impingement of the nerves and muscles of the joint. Rotator cuff injuries are really common. It involves the muscles and ligaments that become torn or stretched as a result of reaching the arm upward and overhead of the body. It is a dangerous injury because it doesn't heal very well and the person is left with a tear in the muscle. Surgeons can repair the rotator cuff to some extent. A dislocated shoulder is when the ball of the humerus is dislocated out of the socket formed by the clavicle and shoulder. The shoulder can dislocate anteriorly, posteriorly or inferior to the shoulder joint itself. A separated shoulder is when the shoulder is separated from the clavicle, widening the space between the joint and the clavicle. Several types of injuries can result in this.
A rotator cuff injury happens when a popping sensation occurs during heavy lifting or strong forceful movements of the shoulder joint. There is pain in the shoulder along with local swelling and sometimes bruising. It is difficult to move the shoulder around due to pain. It is a tear of the muscles or tendons holding the joint together. The shoulder joint becomes inflamed and the tear does not heal very well on its own. There are four muscles that make up the shoulder joint, including the supraspinatus, the infraspinatus, the teres minor and the subscapularis. These are the muscle tendons that are damaged in a rotator cuff injury.
The causes of a rotator cuff injury are degeneration of the tendons (wear and tear) that actually receive very little blood supply. This interferes with the healing of the tendons. This is why you see shoulder tendon problems in the elderly. The other cause of rotator cuff injury is an excessive force on the muscle strain and tear of the tendons during sports or heavy lifting. It is a sudden injury that results in a popping sensation when the tendon tears and pops.
The rotator cuff injury is painful and results in weakness of the shoulder joint. The pain is vague and hard to define. Weakness is common in shoulder injuries and you cannot raise your arm above the level of your head very well. You cannot extend your arm directly out to the side or in front of the body. The larger the tear, the most weakness you have in the muscle.
The treatment of rotator cuff injury should be done as soon as possible. You apply ice, rest the joint, compress the joint and keep the joint elevated. Heat is then applied to allow healing of the joint and to ease the pain of the injury. Massage the joint can help as well. Surgery is done as soon as the swelling goes down to repair the tendon. It sometimes takes months of physical and occupational therapy in order to heal the joint in its entirety.
LAWYER HELPLINE: ☎ 1800 339 958The author of the substantive medical writing on this website is Dr. Christine Traxler MD whose biography can be read here