Soft tissue injuries aren’t uncommon, especially if you’ve been involved in a Miami accident. While many soft tissue injuries will heal over time, others can linger, cause long-lasting pain, and interfere with your life. When someone else is responsible for causing your injury, you have the right to demand compensation.
The Miami personal injury lawyers at Lavent Law, P.A. are here to help you maximize your financial recovery. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation and learn more.
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Soft Tissue Injuries: Acute vs. Chronic
Soft tissue injuries most frequently involve damage to the tendons, ligaments, and/or muscle in the body. These injuries are typically classified as either “acute” or “chronic.” This basically refers to the type of trauma that caused the accident.
Acute: Acute soft tissue injuries occur when the body is involved in a sudden and unexpected traumatic accident. One single traumatic blow or incident could cause an acute soft tissue injury. For example, you may suffer an acute soft tissue injury if you are involved in a fall, car accident, or sports accident.
Chronic: Chronic soft tissue injuries occur when the body is subjected to continued trauma or overuse over an extended period of time. One single incident isn’t enough to cause a chronic injury. For example, you may sustain a chronic soft tissue injury if you use a repetitive motion every day at work. The body doesn’t have time to heal itself between each work day, which puts a strain on the overused area.
Common Soft Tissue Injuries
There are many different kinds of soft tissue injuries. It’s important to know what a soft tissue injury is and how it’s likely to occur.
Bruising (Contusions)
Bruising is an acute injury that occurs when tiny blood vessels under the skin burst after the body is subjected to sudden external trauma. The classic sign of bruising is discoloration of the skin. This is actually a pooling of blood in the damaged area. Other signs of bruising can include swelling, tenderness, and limited mobility.
Tendinitis
Tendinitis is a chronic injury that involves the inflammation of tendons that connect soft tissue and bones in the joints. This type of injury tends to affect the legs, arms, and shoulders most. Signs of tendinitis include swelling, limited mobility, and pain that becomes worse with activity.
Bursitis
Bursitis is a chronic injury that occurs when small, fluid-filled sacs in your joints burst. These sacs, called bursae, are located between your soft tissue and bones. They act as a cushion and prevent friction in the body when you move. The bursae can become inflamed when you overuse a particular area of the body. This can cause the sacs to rupture and cause extreme pain, especially in the hips, knees, shoulders, and elbows.
Symptoms of bursitis include swelling, limited mobility, and pain.
Sprain
A sprain is one of the most frequently reported soft tissue injuries. Sprains, which are an acute injury, occur when ligaments in the body tear or stretch. This typically happens when a joint is suddenly and unexpectedly twisted or rotated, often as the result of an accident. The knees, ankles, wrists, and elbows are most vulnerable to sprains.
Symptoms of a sprain include tenderness, pain, bruising, swelling, and a limited range of motion.
Strain
Strains, which can be the result of acute or chronic trauma, occur when tendons or muscle in the body are torn or stretched. This can happen when the body is subjected to sudden trauma or if you put a great deal of stress on a particular area of the body over an extended period of time.
Symptoms of a strain include weakness, pain, cramping, swelling, and muscle tightness.
Causes of Soft Tissue Injuries in Miami
Soft tissue injuries aren’t uncommon, especially when another person is negligent. Some of the most commonly reported causes of soft tissue injuries in Miami include:
- Car accidents
- Motorcycle collisions
- Pedestrian accidents
- Slips and falls
- Recreational vehicle accidents
- Recreational activities
- Assault
- Boat accidents
- Nursing home abuse
- Construction accidents, and
- Workplace accidents.
Has someone else’s negligence caused you to suffer a soft tissue injury? Contact Lavent Law, P.A. for help. We’ll review your case, explain your rights, and help you fight for the money you deserve.
Compensation Available to Soft Tissue Injury Victims
When someone else is negligent you can suffer serious injuries. When this happens, you have the right to pursue compensation through a personal injury lawsuit. The money you recover won’t guarantee a full or swift recovery, but it can be incredibly helpful as you fight to get back on your feet. At Lavent Law, P.A., our attorneys will aggressively pursue economic and non-economic damages on your behalf.
Economic Damages
Economic damages are available if you have suffered any financial expenses or losses because of your soft tissue injury. Awarding economic damages helps to mitigate the financial pressure you experience because of the injury-causing accident.
Examples of economic damages include those for:
- Lost wages
- Disability
- Property damage
- Medical expenses
- Rehabilitation costs
- Nursing care, and more.
In Florida, you can only recover economic damages to the extent of your losses. In other words, you can’t recover more than you’ve lost or will expect to lose. These damages are only intended to help you get back in the financial position you were in before your injury.
Non-Economic Damages
Some consequences of a soft tissue injury won’t have immediate or specific financial costs. However, this doesn’t make them any less harmful or stressful. Non-economic damages are awarded to compensate you for these intimate and hard-to-value injuries.
Examples of non-economic damages include those for:
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Embarrassment
- Loss of enjoyment of life, and more.
Our attorneys work closely with experts to determine the extent and severity of your injuries. This allows us to ensure that your case is valued properly. We’ll approach the defendant (or their insurer) and demand fair compensation. Since we have strong evidence and expert support, it’s harder for the at-fault party to offer anything but a fair settlement.
How Our Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help You
Suffering a soft tissue injury in an accident or at work can be incredibly stressful. Injuries like these can be painful and sideline you at work. Filing a personal injury lawsuit can help you get the money you need to make your recovery a little bit easier. However, you shouldn’t have to try to navigate a complex personal injury case on your own. Hiring an attorney will give you time to focus on getting better while also increasing the odds of a successful outcome.
Here’s how our personal injury attorneys will help you with your personal injury case.
1. Protect You From Insurers
When you file a personal injury lawsuit you’ll probably be dealing with an insurance company. It’s important to understand that these companies have one goal in mind: minimize your payout. They’re not interested in helping you get the money you need after an accident. They’ll do anything they can to protect their bottom line. Some may offer an early settlement to make your case go away for next-to-nothing. Others may try to take advantage of your emotions and convince you to accept an incredibly low offer. Others will simply refuse to play ball.
Our attorneys know how to deal with manipulative insurance companies. We’ll stand up for you and hold these companies responsible for any harm you’ve suffered. We will not let them trick you into accepting an offer that won’t cover the full extent of your damages.
2. File Your Claim On Time
When you’re injured in a Miami accident you only have a short window of time in which you can file a personal injury claim. In most situations, you’ll have three years to file your claim. However, there are certain instances when you’ll have more or less time to take action. When you call Lavent Law, P.A. after your accident, we’ll make sure that your claim is filed within the applicable statute of limitations. This will protect your right to recover compensation.
3. Determine Cause and Liability
In Florida, anyone who contributed to your accident and soft tissue injury can be responsible for damages. Our attorneys will carefully investigate your accident and determine the precise cause(s). This will allow us to identify anyone who may have played a part in causing your soft tissue injury. We’ll demand compensation from anyone who has contributed to your suffering.
Call our Miami Soft Tissue Injury Lawyers
Have you suffered a soft tissue injury in a Miami accident? You may want to consider filing a personal injury lawsuit to recover compensation. Contact Lavent Law, P.A. to find out how our personal injury lawyers can help you fight for the money you deserve. We offer a free consultation, so do not hesitate to call for help today.
