When we deal with semi-truck crash cases we often see clients with some sort of spinal cord injury. The spinal cord is a long thing bundle of nerves that runs from your brain down the center of your spine. It ends in your 
lower back. The spine protects it. In our experience cord injuries are more common in the type of high-energy collision present in a semi-truck crash or in cases involving vehicle rollovers. But the reality is spinal cord injuries can occur in any type of injury accident.
The fact that a person has a spinal cord injury does not mean that they automatically have quadriplegia. The severity of the injury can vary widely. Some spinal cord injuries do lead to paralysis and permanent changes in the injured person’s life. There are other spinal cord injuries do not have large long-term effects on the injured person. A spinal cord injury can lead to loss of movement and feeling. There can be impacts on how your brain controls your internal organs responsible for bodily functions. This includes bladder control. Basically,the connection, or communications, between the body below the injury and your brain is impaired or broken.
Spinal Cord Injuries Are Assessed Based On The American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale.
The scale such injuries are measured by is referred to as the ASIA scale. The most severe injuries are in Class A and the least severe in Class E.
Class A injuries are complete spinal cord injuries. In these, the the person no longer has any sensory or motor function below the injury point.
Class B injuries are ones in which a person has completely lost motor function below the injury point, but maintains some sensory function It is referred to as an incomplete spinal cord injury. An incomplete injury is when a person has lost some, but not all, sensory or motor function below the point of the injury. The same is true of Class C and D injuries. These two types differ in the amount of loss of key muscle strength below the injury location.
The last and least severe type of spinal cord injuries are Class E injuries. These are injuries that have not caused a person’s sensory and motor functions to deviate from normal.
Spinal Cord Injuries Change Lives
A serious cord injury can wreak havoc on your life and abilities. Even a more “minor” spinal cord insult can lead to major life changes that affect your ability to carry out the activities of daily living. People lose jobs, lose the ability to participate in once-loved activities and live with constant pain.
In short, spinal cord injuries change lives. And to recover the true financial losses in litigation they require specialized evaluation not only by medical professionals,but by experienced personal injury attorneys who are competent trial counsel. Attorneys like us understand the need for litigation specialists like life care planners and vocational rehabilitation professionals. These are people who need to be consulted and made part of the damages presentation.
If you have been in any type of injury accident and are dealing with a spinal cord injury, call us. The initial consultation is free. We help people all over Idaho.
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