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Losing a digit or limb can be one of the most traumatic outcomes of a personal injury accident. In these catastrophic injury cases, you or your loved one must cope with the physical and mental trauma. While many personal injury claims do not involve amputation, some do. This can lead to the question, “What are the most common causes of amputation injuries?” Car accidents and workplace accidents are two of the leading causes of amputation injuries.
If you or your loved one have lost a limb or digit in a catastrophic accident in the DC metro area, you may be entitled to financial compensation. Recovery and adjustment after limb loss are expensive and extensive. An experienced personal injury lawyer at Regan Zambri Long will take on the legal burden so that you or your loved one can focus on healing from your traumatic injury.
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Causes of amputation vary from catastrophic accidents to medical malpractice to medical necessity. Mistakes can occur while trained medical professionals prioritize a patient’s life over a limb.
Personal injury cases involving amputations can be complicated, but an experienced amputation injury lawyer from Regan Zambri Long will help you get justice. A prosthetic limb, physical therapy, and medical bills create a heavy financial burden, especially when you or your loved one are unable to work during recovery. Regan Zambri Long will consider all your losses to pursue maximum compensation for you.
The leading cause of amputations in the US is vascular disease, accounting for 54 percent of amputation surgeries. Traumatic amputations make up 45 percent of limb loss in the US. The leading causes of these losses include vehicle accidents, equipment accidents, and combat injuries.
Traffic accidents where speed is a factor are more likely to lead to upper limb amputations and lower limb amputations. Catastrophic vehicle accidents can completely sever a body part or damage it beyond saving.
When car crash victims suffer a traumatic amputation, physical therapy, and a prosthetic limb are just two of the many costs that will create a heavy financial burden.
Workplace and equipment accidents are also leading causes of amputations. Work sites and industries that work with heavy machinery, such as farming and manufacturing, as well as construction and industries that use sharp tools, are at higher risk for traumatic amputations.
Employees may get entangled or caught in equipment, such as conveyor belts or gears. Employees working with and around forklifts, tractors, and other vehicles risk being run over. In 2018, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 58 percent of work-related amputations involved some machinery.
While amputation surgery is sometimes necessary to save a life, sometimes medical mistakes cause amputations. Medical malpractice claims for amputation injuries can be complicated.
Failure to diagnose or misdiagnosis, particularly of vascular diseases, can lead to the loss of a limb as the medical team tries to get ahead of the illness or condition.
In other malpractice cases, a surgeon may amputate the wrong limb.
Finally, post-surgical infections or blood clots can also lead to an amputation if they aren’t diagnosed and treated right away.
Playing with guns, fireworks, and other explosives can lead to finger, hand, or upper arm amputations. While operator experience contributes to many of these accidents, negligence and product defects are also causes of amputations.
Amputation occurs when a limb or digit is too damaged to be saved and may pose a risk to the victim’s overall health. Victims undergo surgery to remove the injured limb. Partial amputations are possible, but some catastrophic injuries require surgical amputation of the entire limb.
An amputation will disrupt the entirety of a person’s life, requiring extensive physical therapy, therapy to recover from the psychological trauma, and various accommodations to help them continue to go about daily life.
Amputation injuries generally fall into three categories: surgical, traumatic, and post-amputation complications.
Surgical amputations occur for a variety of health-related reasons. These can include blood vessel disease, cancer, infection, or tissue damage. If blood vessels are damaged or the blood supply is cut off, healthcare professionals may need to amputate.
Vascular diseases and conditions that affect blood flow, such as diabetes and peripheral artery disease, cause many surgical amputations. An amputation of this nature if often a lower limb amputation, foot amputation, or loss of one or more toes.
Accidents and injuries cause traumatic amputations. Johns Hopkins reports that 45 percent of amputations are traumatic. In these cases, the limb or digit is cut or torn off during the accident or is so severely damaged that it is beyond saving. Severe burns and crushed limbs are two causes of amputation.
Traumatic amputation can occur if an injury causes blood flow to be cut off for an extended period, causing tissue necrosis or death.
Seventy percent of amputations of upper limbs are caused by traumatic accidents, according to Stanford Medicine.
While you can claim compensation for an amputation, you may also be entitled to compensation for your post-surgical pain and suffering.
Phantom limb pain occurs after an amputation and leads victims to feel pain or sensation in the amputated limb. Sensations can range from an annoying tingle to sharp or shooting pain. While this may diminish over time, you may still be entitled to compensation for the pain and suffering, and mental anguish the experience causes.
Other potential complications include slow wound healing, infection, heart complications, and deep vein thrombosis or blood colts.
Approximately 185,000 amputations are performed each year, according to the Amputee Coalition. These include transtibial amputation (lower leg), transfemoral amputation (above-the-knee), upper limb amputation, and partial foot amputation, as well as amputation of fingers and toes.
Liability for an amputation depends on the facts of the situation. When someone else’s negligence causes an amputation, a personal injury case can hold the liable party accountable. Personal injury cases can include a driver who caused a car wreck, a property or business owner whose premise was unsafe, or a doctor or medical team who provided negligent care.
If you or your loved one have had a body part amputated and you believe it was because of negligence, you should consult with an amputation injury lawyer as soon as possible. Your lawyer will investigate your amputation injury and bring personal injury cases against all liable parties.
When you or your loved one are dealing with an amputation injury or common amputation complications, a personal injury case may be the furthest thing from your mind. But you will likely reach a financial breaking point as medical bills and expenses build. Your DC metro amputation injury lawyer will ensure that you recover the financial compensation you are due.
A lawyer from Regan Zambri Long will investigate your case and determine who is liable for your injury. We will prove that your loss was caused by negligence and recover your maximum compensation.
The causes of amputation are varied, so it may be hard to know if you have a personal injury claim. Regan Zambri Long’s personal injury lawyers will meet with you for a free consultation to discuss your situation and outline your legal options.
Regan Zambri Long’s amputation injury lawyers are recognized throughout the DC metro area as the best. We approach each case with compassion and dedication, pursuing justice to the fullest extent of the law.
We have law offices throughout Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC. We have recovered millions of dollars for amputation victims, and we can do the same for you. Our successes include a $3 million settlement for a woman who suffered a traumatic amputation after a truck struck her, a $2.1 million settlement for a man who suffered an above-the-knee amputation after a car crash, and a $1.6 million settlement for a motorcyclist who suffered a traumatic amputation after another vehicle crashed into him.
Regan Zambri Long’s lawyers work on a contingency fee basis, meaning we only take payment once we’ve recovered in your favor. The press and peers consistently recognize our team as top-tier lawyers.
Schedule your free case evaluation today by calling 202-960-4596.
