Car accidents have the potential to cause painful shoulder injuries. The shoulder is one of the largest and most complex joints in the body, and when you’re in a crash, the violent nature of the collision can cause a significant amount of stress and trauma that your shoulders are not made to withstand.
Shoulder pain after an accident can be a sign of a serious injury, which is why you should never self-diagnose and always seek immediate medical attention after a crash. The cost to treat a shoulder injury can be significant, and if you wait too long to get checked out, you could end up missing out on the compensation you’re entitled to.
Some of the most common shoulder injuries you can sustain in a crash include:
- Soft tissue damage – The shoulder’s muscles, ligaments, and tendons can overly stretch and then tear due to the force of an accident, leading to a painful muscle strain or ligament sprain.
- Torn rotator cuff – This injury occurs when the rotator cuff tendons in your shoulder are damaged. A torn rotator cuff is a painful injury that can limit your shoulder mobility.
- Broken bones and fractures – It’s possible to fracture any one of the three major bones in the shoulder: the humerus, shoulder blade, or collarbone.
- Dislocation – The rotator cuff keeps the bones of the shoulder in their socket. The impact of an accident can cause the bones to shift or completely pop out of the socket.
Symptoms of a shoulder injury
When suffering from a shoulder injury, it’s common to feel pain in that area. Sometimes, you may feel nothing at all. Pain can occur directly after a car accident or develop days or weeks later.
Some symptoms of a shoulder injury are:
- Tingling or numbness in the shoulder or arms
- Shooting pain
- Feeling a burning sensation in the shoulder
- Shoulder weakness or tenderness
- Muscle spasms
- Loss of motion or limited range of motion in the shoulder
Treatment
Depending on the severity of your shoulder injury, treatment may include rest, prescription medication, arthroscopic surgery, and physical therapy. If the injury is more extreme, you may need shoulder reconstruction surgery or joint replacement surgery.
Again, the important thing is to take your shoulder pain seriously and get checked out by a doctor. You need an official diagnosis, and a doctor will be able to order an X-ray, MRI, CT scan, or another type of imaging test to find out what’s causing your pain.
Contact a car accident lawyer
If you’re suffering from shoulder pain after a car accident, you need to seek medical attention right away. If not treated in a timely manner, the injury and pain may worsen. Seeing a doctor promptly after a crash also creates an immediate record of your injury, which can be critical to the outcome of your claim.
After that, you need to contact an experienced car accident attorney to go over your legal rights and options. The cost of a shoulder injury sustained in a car accident can be significant, and the insurance company has a financial incentive to pay you as little money as possible. That’s why you need a car accident lawyer to look out for your best interests and advocate for the compensation you deserve.
At Zbinden & Curtis, we know how to build winning cases. When you call us, we will listen to your story, answer your questions, and break down all your legal options so you can decide how you want to move forward.
To find out more about how we can help you, contact us today to schedule a free consultation.
