Does Whiplash and Chronic Pain Qualify for Personal Injury Compensation in Florida?

If you have been hurt in a car or truck accident in Florida, it is important to seek medical care immediately after your crash to ensure each of your injuries is accounted for, treated, and monitored going forward.

This is especially true when your injuries are complex and lead to long-term chronic pain.

Not only is your well-being the priority after suffering a personal injury in a collision but seeking the proper care will mean the difference in whether you can pursue the negligent party for financial recovery.

At the Law Offices of Keith Bregoff, PA, our Vero Beach personal injury attorney will walk you through the legal process and provide the representation you need to make informed decisions about your case’s direction.

What Are the Most Common Signs of Whiplash?

While some believe whiplash is a minor injury, the reality is it can lead to ongoing medical problems that seriously affect our clients’ lives going forward.

Whiplash can cause:

• Chronic pain in the neck, arm, back, muscles, or shoulder
• Difficulty concentrating
• Dizziness or vertigo
• Headaches or migraines
• Muscle spasms
• Nerve injury
• Stiff neck
• Tingling or numbness
• Trouble sleeping

Get Treatment Immediately After Any Florida Accident Occurs

One of the best ways to ensure your safety, and that your medical needs are established immediately after a collision, is to seek professional medical care directly after the accident occurs.

Physical injuries, including whiplash, may not surface immediately, as symptoms are easily masked by the adrenaline and confusion of the crash. The sooner medical professionals can assess your injuries — and document them going forward — the better equipped you will be to pursue financial damages later.

How is Whiplash Diagnosed After a Florida Traffic Accident?

Medical professionals are trained to identify factors that contribute to whiplash injuries and will administer the proper care and necessary screenings to ensure each of your injuries are captured during their assessment.

This could include:

• Traditional X-rays
• CT scan
• Specialized imaging, including an MRI

The physicians will use each tool at their disposal to record any damage to soft tissue, muscles, ligaments, or discs in the affected area. While there is no actual test for whiplash, the due diligence of your medical team will help prove that an injury occurred within the soft tissue and will fully explain that whiplash — when diagnosed as such — is the source of your symptoms and chronic pain.

How Will My Florida Personal Injury Case Reflect My Chronic Pain from Whiplash?

Pain that lasts longer than six months and ranges from mild to unbearable is considered chronic pain. Some accident injury victims suffer long-term pain that is considered inconvenient or nagging while others can be completely debilitated by pain that fully disrupts their quality of life.

What’s more, is chronic pain has many consequences that fall outside of physical suffering.

Anxiety and depression or withdrawing from activities you used to love — and even those that you are required to do, including your job — can negatively affect every aspect of your life.

The State of Florida allows personal injury victims to pursue damages for physical and emotional distress, with limitations, to cover their pain and suffering from:

• Permanent disability
• Permanent scarring or disfigurement
• Significant or permanent loss of a bodily function
• Wrongful death

To pursue financial recovery for pain and suffering in Florida, the source of your affliction must be a physical injury that was caused during the accident.

If you have suffered an injury in a traffic accident, contact our skilled Indian River County and Vero Beach personal injury attorney at the Law Offices of Keith Bregoff, PA, today by calling (772) 492-8967 to schedule a free consultation. We will review your medical records and speak with your physicians to determine the full extent of your injuries, so we can build your case according to your complete financial recovery needs.