Any automobile accident disrupts the life of all those involved, and sometimes the lives of family members as well. Yet some accidents are so terrible that one or more of the persons involved must soon deal with the effects of a life-altering event. That event (the accident) was so terrible that it caused one or more individuals to suffer a spinal cord injury.
How can a life get altered by damage to a person’s spinal cord?
The spinal cord holds a bundle of nerves, which it is supposed to protect. Certain types of damage, though, destroy the cord’s ability to protect the channels (bundles) that contain the nerve fibers. Hence the fibers in the nerve get exposed to specific threats. Such exposure could rob one group of nerves of the ability to trigger movement of the lungs, which is part of the inhalation and exhalation process. Another group of nerves might lose its ability to signal the muscles that cause a given limb to move. Other groups might suffer a reduced ability to ensure movement of the tongue and lips, or to guarantee movement of the tongue and lips.
Some of the nervous tissue in the spinal cord contributes to the mind’s ability to note specific sensations. That would include the sense of sight, as well as the sense of touch. Touch ensures a person’s ability to feel. Hence loss of the sense of touch means loss of certain sensations, such as the one that controls detection of extremely hot objects.
Think how your life could be affected by a failure to detect extremely hot objects. You would stand at risk for placing some part of your body next to a dangerously hot item. As a result, that same body part might become severely burned. That possible sequence of events underscores one reason that someone inflicted with a spinal cord injury can be said to have endured a life-altering situation.
What types of accidents tend to be linked to spinal cord injuries?
Due to the way that driver and passengers get thrown around during a motored vehicle accident, such collisions can cause an injury to the spinal column. For similar reasons, motor cycle accidents can also contribute to development of such an injury. Off the road, damage to the spine and the column inside of it can arise following one diver’s willingness to try a dangerous dive. In fact, any dangerous sport could contribute to creation of such injuries. Other events that could inflict damage on the spine are falls and violent assaults.
For what damages could the victim expect reasonable compensation?
Obviously, such a victim would not be able to return to the workplace. He or she would suffer loss of income and loss of future earning power. It would become necessary to purchase medical equipment for the person with the damaged cord. In addition, he or she would need to take part in a rehabilitation program. Apart from that it is essential to hire the services of an injury lawyer in Lethbridge.