Car Accidents and Sternum Pain: A Legal Overview

If you're experiencing constant sternum pain following a car accident, don't ignore it. Consult a qualified, experienced physician immediately as it could indicate the presence of a more serious problem. Our free consultation injury lawyers can assist you by ensuring that you receive the right diagnosis and treatment. Victims may experience a variety of injuries, ranging from minor bruises, cuts and lacerations to more serious injury to brain, spinal cord, internal organs etc. and unless victims get themselves thoroughly checked by a competent doctor, this could seriously affect their health and well-being. Accidents are rarely random events and they're caused by another person's fault or negligence. Often, victims or their relatives tend to minimize minor injuries and avoid going to doctors or hospitals immediately. Our accident injury lawyers available 24x7 can assist victims and their families with the right advice.

Causes of Sternum Pain

The sternum or breast-bone along with the ribs acts as a protective cage for the heart, lungs and other internal organs. Any severe impact or blow to this region of the chest can result in bruising, fracture or damage, all of which can cause severe pain, inability to move, breathing difficulties, swelling and blood-clotting along the area, sharp pain while laughing, sneezing, coughing etc, indicating that there could be damage to the sternum.

If left untreated, serious conditions like costochondritis or inflammation of the cartilage that connect the ribs and sternum could cause major difficulties and health hazards. It results in lack of mobility, respiratory problems, anxiety and depression and increases the victim's dependence on others for daily living activities.

Sternum pain after a car accident may be characterized by acute, sharp pains while stretching or moving, it may be localized or spread out, based on the nature of the injury, pain intensifies with minimal pressure to the chest, is continuous even when the person is at rest and increases with coughing, sneezing, laughter, talking etc.

Contact a personal injury lawyer without delay following a car accident to begin the process of filing a personal injury claim against those responsible for the accident.

Treatment for Sternum Pain

Any trauma to the chest has to be thoroughly examined before treatment begins. This is to rule out damage to internal organs like the lungs, heart, local blood vessels and other organs. One of the hazards of sternum fracture, if left untreated, is the collapse of the lungs. Hence, doctors prescribe numerous tests and examinations to ensure that the right diagnosis is reached. If the injury results in bruising, a regimen of daily care is prescribed. This would include ice-packs to relieve pain and reduce swelling. Micro-wave heat-packs may also give relief in certain cases.

Excessive movement should be avoided, including vigorous exercises, lifting heavy weights etc. Smoking should be completely avoided, as nicotine compresses blood vessels and prevents the tissues from receiving a healthy blood supply. Some cases benefit from micro-current therapy, low impact exercises, breathing exercises etc. Painkillers and muscle relaxants may be prescribed in case of severe pain.

In general, bruising and minor injuries take a few weeks or a couple of months to heal, but sternum fractures can take many months or even a year to heal completely. If surgery has been performed to take care of internal bleeding or damage to organs, the recovery time could be even further delayed.

This means that the victim is out of work for extended periods of time and requires constant care and supervision. Physiotherapy and rehabilitation procedures, along with multiple visits to the hospital/clinic, medication, modifications to the home or vehicle etc can put an enormous financial burden on the victim and the family. Our serious injury lawyers can help victims and their families to deal with this situation and ensure that everything is done to make life comfortable for them.

How We Can Assist

Our Richmond Hill personal injury lawyer like the others on our team can ensure that the victim's rights are protected in a personal injury case. Compensation claims have to filed within a specified time-frame and we can help to complete the paperwork accurately and in time. Settlement is achieved through a process of negotiation and mutual agreement. However, in most cases, disputes arise about the nature and extent of injury and liability. The settlement amount is to be paid out by the at-fault party's insurers.  Since we exclusively handle personal injury cases, our personal injury lawyers ontario are well-versed with insurance laws as well. We also fund your case completely, including legal fees, medical expenses, care and rehabilitation of the victim.

If you, your family or a friend has been injured in an accident, please feel free to speak to one of our injury lawyers for a free consultation about how we are able to assist in making a personal injury claim. We consult in all cities across Ontario with a no win no fee guarantee. Our personal injury lawyers have helped victims secure millions of dollars in personal injury cases. Call us Toll Free On our 24/7 Injury Hotline: 1 - 844 495 7333 or Text a Personal Injury ‎Lawyer 24/7 and get instant help.TM (416 931 5015)