Law Offices of John Rapillo

Spinal Cord Injury – SCI Accident Attorney, Orange County, CA Trial Lawyer for Plaintiffs

Southern California accident attorney John Rapillo is a trial lawyer for plaintiffs. If you have suffered a spinal cord injury as the result of an accident, he will attempt to settle your  accident case, but will prepare to go to trial if necessary. From Orange County catastrophic personal injury law offices in Newport Beach and Huntington Beach, CA, personal injury and accident attorney John Rapillo helps victims throughout Southern California including: Irvine, Costa Mesa, Santa Ana Heights, Corona Del Mar, Garden Grove, Stanton, Rossmoor, Yorktown, Adams, Fountain Valley, Midway City, Golden West, Riverview, and Tustin.

Effects of a Spinal Cord Injury (SCI)

The effects of a SCI depend on the type of injury and the level of the injury. SCI can be divided into two types of injury – complete and incomplete.

The level of injury is very helpful in predicting what parts of the body might be affected by paralysis and loss of function. Remember that in incomplete injuries there will be some variation in these prognoses. Cervical (neck) injuries usually result in quadriplegia. Injuries above the C-4 level may require a ventilator for the person to breathe. C-5 injuries often result in shoulder and biceps control, but no control at the wrist or hand. C-6 injuries generally yield wrist control, but no hand function. Individuals with C-7 and T-1 injuries can straighten their arms but still may have dexterity problems with the hand and fingers.

Complete Injury of the Spinal Cord

A complete injury means that there is no function below the level of the injury; no sensation and no voluntary movement. Both sides of the body are equally affected. An incomplete injury means that there is some functioning below the primary level of the injury.

Incomplete Injury of the Spinal Cord

A person with an incomplete injury may be able to move one limb more than another, may be able to feel parts of the body that cannot be moved, or may have more functioning on one side of the body than the other. With the advances in acute treatment of SCI, incomplete injuries are becoming more common.

Injuries at the thoracic level and below result in paraplegia, with the hands not affected.

At T-1 to T-8 there is most often control of the hands, but poor trunk control as the result of lack of abdominal muscle control. Lower T-injuries (T-9 to T-12) allow good truck control and good abdominal muscle control. Sitting balance is very good. Lumbar and Sacral injuries yield decreasing control of the hip flexors and legs.

Other Physical Changes Caused by SCI

Besides a loss of sensation or motor functioning, individuals with SCI also experience other changes. For example, they may experience dysfunction of the bowel and bladder. Sexual functioning is frequently affected: men with SCI may have their fertility affected, while women’s fertility is generally not affected. Very high injuries (C-1, C-2) can result in a loss of many involuntary functions including the ability to breathe, necessitating breathing aids such as mechanical ventilators or diaphragmatic pacemakers. Other effects of SCI may include low blood pressure, inability to regulate blood pressure effectively, reduced control of body temperature, inability to sweat below the level of injury, and chronic pain.

A person can “break their back or neck” yet not sustain a spinal cord injury if only the bones around the spinal cord (the vertebrae) are damaged, but the spinal cord is not affected. In these situations, the individual may not experience paralysis after the bones are stabilized.

When a SCI occurs, there is usually swelling of the spinal cord. This may cause changes in virtually every system in the body. After days or weeks, the swelling begins to go down and people may regain some functioning. With many injuries, especially incomplete injuries, the individual may recover some functioning as late as 18 months after the injury. In very rare cases, people with SCI will regain some functioning years after the injury. However, only a very small fraction of individuals sustaining SCIs recover all functioning.

Research and Advancements in Spinal Cord Injury Treatment

Although there are many researchers attempting to reverse spinal cord injury damage this problem, and there have been many advances in the lab, currently there is no cure for SCI. Many of the most exciting advances have resulted in a decrease in damage at the time of the injury. Steroid drugs such as methylprednisolone reduce swelling, which is a common cause of secondary damage at the time of injury. The experimental drug Sygen®appears to reduce loss of function, although the mechanism is not completely understood.

Spinal Cord Injury Lawsuits

Any injury to the spinal cord is serious. If you suffered a spinal cord injury as the result of the actions of someone else you may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, as well as to damages for your injury, including loss of consortium, loss of future income, and damages for pain and suffering and/or emotional distress. [FAQs About Damages]

With most spinal cord injuries, a person is likely to need some assistive care and medical treatment for the rest of their life. You need an experienced trial lawyer who will prepare your case to go to trial in the event a fair settlement arrangement cannot be reached. Attorney John Rapillo, has the legal experience to prepare your case and get you the best possible outcome.

In spinal cord injury cases it is essential that measures be taken promptly to preserve evidence, review the medical procedures in question, and to enable physicians or other expert witnesses to thoroughly evaluate the accident record and injuries.   Call us today for a free initial consultation, or use our online form to submit your situation for a free, confidential case evaluation.

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