Los Angeles Elbow Injury Attorneys

Elbow Anatomy: How Does the Elbow Move?

An elbow consists of a joint, a hinge, ligaments, bones, and other complex parts. The elbow moves with the help of a hinge and attaches to the rest of the arm. A smooth elbow movement is made possible by all the components of the elbow working together in synergy. With the help of joints and ligaments, the elbow can lift the arm up and down.

Any personal injury to the elbow can affect the other components, which in turn may cause pain or restrict movement in the arms. A broken bone, fracture, ligament tear, or any other sort of elbow injury comes with heavy medical costs. Such injuries can disrupt the smooth movement of an elbow with injured parties.

If you’re experiencing pain in your elbow after a personal injury accident, you need a medical professional to have a look at it. The emergency services at the scene of a sudden accident may offer to check you out. In that case, you should always accept a quick medical examination at the accident scene to identify any hidden injuries and ensure that you are fine. If the EMTs did not do a medical checkup on you, you can visit a medical hospital in Los Angeles for one.

The elbow is an important feature in the functioning of the arms. A severe elbow injury can put a person off work for weeks, or even months. You need reimbursement for the losses you suffered from an elbow injury from the defendants with responsibility. Our experienced personal injury attorneys in Los Angeleshave the resources to win. We have the expertise to help you file claims and handle the entire claims process on your behalf.

Common Elbow Injuries in Los Angeles

Many conditions can affect the elbow. Some elbow conditions can manifest over time, such as at work from repetitive actions, while others can from a car accident or non work related event.

The elbow injuries that are most often reported in the United States are:

• Tennis Elbow

• Tendonitis (More of a repetitive stress injury.)

• Broken bones

• Tendon rupture

• Muscle sprains

• Ulna nerve irritation

• Dislocation

• Fractures (More common in a car accident.)

What is a Traumatic Elbow Injury?

A traumatic elbow injury or an acute elbow injury occurs as a result of a sudden impact. This could happen in contact sports during a collision, a car accident, or a slip and fall accident where the person falls on their arm. Oftentimes injured workers will receive far less than the financial benefits owed them, depending on the injury.

This is why it’s so important to speak with proven Los Angeles trial lawyers to prove liability before trying to reach an insurance company settlement.

Here are the common types of traumatic elbow injuries across the country and indeed in Los Angeles County.

Broken Elbow

There are three places where an elbow can break in the event of an accident, and these are the joint at the elbow, the upper arm, and just near the forearm.

Elbow Hyperextension

An elbow hyperextension occurs when the elbow is forcefully bent beyond the normal range of motion, causing a tear in the ligaments and affecting the elbow bones. The injury can even cause dislocation if the elbow bends in the opposite direction. Elbow hyperextension is common among athletes in contact sports such as football, tennis, and weight lifting, among many others.

When elbow hyperextension occurs, you’ll hear a “pop” sound, which is then followed by intense pain.

Sprained Elbow

These are injuries to the ligaments surrounding the elbow joint and can occur due to sudden movements such as jerks or twisting of the arm.

The ligaments found in the elbow joint help to connect with the upper arm and forearm bones. A sprained elbow can be painful and limit one’s ability to move their elbow.

Dislocated Elbow

When the bones that make up the elbow joint move out of place, either due to a direct blow or an impact from an accident, it can lead to a dislocated elbow. Among adults, the elbow is the second most commonly dislocated joint, right after the shoulder.

Ulnar Nerve Compression

This type of injury occurs when the ulnar nerve, one of the three main nerves in the arm, becomes compressed or irritated, causing inflammation and leading to nerve pain and neuropathy. In certain cases, ulnar nerve compression can negatively affect grip strength, making it a challenge to grasp items.

Common Causes of Elbow Injuries

How your injury occurred will be the primary issue. It can occur from a direct blow to the elbow or an impact from an accident, like a car accident.

Some of the common causes of elbow injuries in the United States include:

• Car accidents

• Motorcycle accidents

• Pedestrian accidents

• Slip and fall accidents

• Product defect accidents

• Workplace accidents, and more

Let’s look at one of the causes in detail to understand how an elbow suffers from injuries. During a car accident, your elbow can bump into the steering wheel, console, door frame, dashboard, and other objects or parts of the car, resulting in pain and limited elbow movements.

If you suffered elbow related accident due to another’s negligence, contact our experienced Los Angeles elbow injury attorneys immediately and receive a free case review.

Symptoms of Elbow Injuries

There are some common symptoms across all types of elbow injuries, and these include the following:

• Sudden, striking pain

• Elbow bruising or discoloration

• Restricted motion

• Elbow inflammation

If you’re suffering from any of the above-mentioned symptoms, it is important to visit a specialist immediately.

How to Diagnose an Elbow Injury?

Bruises and discoloration near the elbow might be an indication of an elbow injury, but to make sure, doctors carry out a couple of tests that will include:

• Prior medical history: Your doctor will go over your medical history and ask you about any problems with your elbow in the past.

• Physical exam: The doctor will carry out a few physical tests to determine the extent of the damage and assess the area where the injury is. They will ask you questions regarding elbow pain and the region where you’re feeling it the most.

• Imaging tests: To determine if a person has a fracture, the doctor will most likely recommend taking an imaging test. A doctor may recommend an MRI to identify any pathologic conditions, as car accidents have the tendency to trigger prior injuries.

Sometimes, imaging tests such as X-rays and other radiographs may miss small fractures, which your doctor then needs to check for. In some cases, your healthcare provider may need to manipulate the elbow or immobilize it to start the healing process. All the treatment options depend on the type of injury sustained.

Treatment Options for Elbow Injuries

Recovery from a shoulder or elbow injury may require physical therapy or possibly surgery to help stamp or mitigate pain disabilities caused by the trauma. The treatment options could vary depending on the severity of the injury and the type of injury. Some injuries that result in ligament tears may require surgical intervention, such as ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, while others may simply require a bit of rest and applying ice packs.

If the person is suffering from a broken elbow, then the doctor may recommend open reduction with internal fixation. This is a two-step treatment where the surgeon first re-aligns the elbow and then uses orthopedic implants to hold it into position.

Let’s look at treatment options according to the different types of elbow damage. Keep in mind, both shoulder and elbow injuries can prevent injured workers from working. So a shoulder or elbow injury lawyer from our workers compensation attorney group may be the last chance for the injured individual to feed their family during their recovery period.

Anterior Elbow Injuries

Anterior elbow injuries often cause pain during flexing motion in both the forearm and the elbow. Depending on the severity of the accident, you may need to undergo physical therapy to restore the elbow to normal movement.

Lateral Elbow

Most commonly caused by repetitive motion, lateral elbow trauma are the swelling or tearing of the tendons. People suffering from these issues must get adequate rest and avoid any elbow movements in the initial stages of healing. Doctors may slowly recommend adding some stretches and strengthening exercises to aid in the healing process.

People with lateral elbow damage may require wearing a brace and taking corticosteroid injections or topical applications to assist in a speedy recovery.

Medial Elbow

Your healthcare provider will advise you to possibly use a splint on the elbow at night, which will help you to keep the arm in a position not to jostle or move the area out of alignment. You may be told to stretch the elbow, use physical therapy exercises, or treat it with rehabilitation if necessary.

If you have this type of elbow injury, our case attorneys in Los Angeles can pursue legal action to ensure that the good things that you deserve will come back to you. It is critical to understand that even after suffering such a loss, you can seek compensation to help you heal properly and regain the use of your arm and elbow.

Posterior Elbow

If posterior elbow injuries show major swelling and serious pain, there may be a need for surgery or a corticosteroid injection course.

Most elbows can heal over time, but taking pain relief medications and icing the injury frequently can reduce the recovery time. Doctors also recommend keeping the elbow still for the initial healing period to prevent any further injuries from occurring. They may give you a cast to ensure that your elbow remains in one place.

Whether you have a minor elbow condition or a major one, speak to our legal experts immediately. We will help recover the money you deserve for your loss.

Average Settlement for an Elbow Case

One of the most common questions injured victims ask our legal team is the average settlement amount, so they will know how much their claim might be worth.

Our personal injury attorneys have considerable experience handling these cases. The settlement for an elbow injury varies depending on the severity of the injury. In cases where the damage is severe and the injury causes a certain level of disability, injured victims can recover hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Some sources suggest that the average settlement ranges between $50,000 and $150,000. However, it is best to speak to an attorney about your injury to help calculate the value of your claim.

A session of physical therapy can set you back hundreds of dollars, and depending on your injury, you may have to attend multiple sessions for weeks or even months. Surgery can go into the tens of thousands of dollars.

Besides medical expenses, an injured victim may also experience lost wages for not attending work due to their injury and suffering from pain.

Depending on how skilled your attorney is, all these factors added together can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars. The attorneys at Ehline Law will aggressively pursue your claims to ensure that you receive maximum compensation for your loss.

Elbow Injuries and Workplace Compensation

You can suffer from a shoulder or elbow injury in the workplace. Whether your injury is from repetitive lifting, moving around heavy objects, or even sudden jerks from slip and fall while carrying items, or machine defect accidents (defective jackhammers, etc.), mishaps do occur at work.

A slip and fall elbow case may be much easier to diagnose than harm affecting range of motion from repetitive lifting. These conditions develop slowly over time without the injured victim noticing. Therefore, repetitive stress injuries are difficult to diagnose by doctors and prove in court for injury lawyers.

If normal daily functions are hindered, injured workers must notify their supervisor and file an injury report under the work comp system. Once they’re done with filing the report, they must request a medical examination diagnosis and seek medical treatment to resume a normal life and job duties.

Work Comp System?

Employees have workers’ compensation insurance whereby they get treated and payment for any workdays missed as a result of an accident that occurred at the workplace. Because these are corporate insurance policies, the insurer would send you to a doctor on their panel for a medical examination where topics like physical pain and emotional distress will be addressed.

Even though your workplace might be the reason for your injury, insurance companies’ doctors will mostly attribute your injury and lost income to something non-work-related. In many cases, employees accept the misdiagnosis and continue working despite the discomfort. However, reach out to an attorney for legal advice if this happens to you.

Workplace compensation attorneys have the experience and skill to determine the cause of a workplace injury. They will also guide you on taking a medical examination from a qualified doctor who is not on the insurance company’s payroll.

Do You Need a Lawyer for a Workers’ Compensation Claim?

You do not need an experienced attorney to file a Los Angeles workers compensation claim as you can do that by yourself as you are receiving medical treatments. However, you may require an attorney’s assistance depending on how your employer or their insurance company treats the claim and your psychological suffering over your pain and disabilities.

Here are a few things you should look out for to help you decide whether you should hire an attorney for legal representation:

• In many cases, the employer will blame previous incidents for your current injury claim. But these are just delaying tactics. An attorney at Ehline Law can help prove the down time occurred due to the hazards present at the workplace.

• If you’re suffering from a permanent disability and are not able to return to work again, you may find that the insurer rejects your worker’s compensation claim as there is typically a lot of money involved in such types of cases. Our workers’ compensation attorney group can help calculate the value of your claim by taking into account all the economic and non-economic damages and aggressively pursuing your claim.

• An employer may use delaying tactics to cause enough stress that the employee decides to drop the claim. If you find that your employer is not moving the case along in an appropriate manner, you must reach out to our legal experts. We have had insurance companies use all sorts of dirty tactics to ensure that they don’t pay out claims. However, because of our close attorney-client relationship, we have helped more than 3,000 injured victims and recovered over $150 million in successful verdicts and settlements.

• Your insurance company simply denies your claim without providing any acceptable reason. If that happens to you, reach out to us immediately to discuss your legal options. We have attorneys who have substantial trial experience and are not afraid to take on any insurance company that is not willing to provide a fair settlement to the court.

There may be many other reasons why an employer may not look out for your best interests, and if that happens, you may want to consider hiring a professional to handle your claim.

What Should You Do If an Insurance Company Denies Your Claims?

Insurance companies do not have a great reputation when it comes to processing claims. They are not looking out for your best interests, but rather the interests of their shareholders. Oftentimes, they’ll make the injured workers believe that they really don’t have the right to compensation and refuse or decline their claims.

Most injured workers often have to endure constant stress and uncertainty when dealing with insurance companies. The anxiety, self-doubt, and uncertainty can further worsen after having your claims denied. With medical bills piling up and a claim rejection, you need to reach out to a workers’ compensation attorney immediately.

An attorney can help you navigate the legal waters by guiding you through the complexities of a workers’ compensation claim. In the event your claim gets rejected, they will ensure a strong case and help with appealing the insurer’s decision.

Your employer’s insurance company does not require a reason to deny your claims. But having a compassionate and knowledgeable attorney on your side can bolster your chances of securing maximum compensation.

What are the Important Deadlines for Workers’ Compensation Claims?

In California, employees should report workplace injuries to their supervisor immediately. No matter what, they must do so within 30 days of the injury occurring. According to the statute of limitations, they have one year following the injury date to file a workers’ compensation claim. However, since federal employees’ cases fall under federal law, they have three years to file a claim.

Two common injuries can occur at a workplace, affecting deadlines:

• Specific injury: This is the type of injury that occurs after a single incident or accident that requires medical attention.

• Cumulative injury: This is a type of injury that occurs over time after repetitive traumatic activities.

A key thing to remember is not to misrepresent your condition, as it could lead to a fraudulent workers’ compensation claim, which is a felony subject and can result in fines or jail time. It can be easier to determine the date of the accident for a specific injury than for a cumulative injury.

If you have a cumulative injury, your deadline starts with either of these two:

• The date you first skipped work due to your injury.

• The date a medical professional informed you that your injury is work-related.

There are also certain exemptions to workers’ compensation claim deadlines. For example, if you’re unable to file a workers’ compensation claim due to a coma, lengthy treatment, or a contagious illness requiring quarantine, the statute of limitations may not apply to your case.

It is crucial to note that you need to inform your employer of the elbow injury within 30 days of knowing it, otherwise you will risk losing the right to file a workers’ compensation claim. Learn more by obtaining a swift, risk-free consultation for your individual case today.

We can help victims in the following Southern California Neighborhoods in the Los Angeles, CA Area:

• Canyon Country

• Canoga Park

• Eagle Rock

• East Los Angeles

• Hermosa Beach

• La Canada Flintridge

• Laguna Hills

• Manhattan Beach

• Marina del Rey

• Monterey Park

• Mission Hill

• Rancho Santa Margarita

• Redondo Beach

• Rolling Hills Estates

• San Diego

• Universal City

• West Los Angeles

• San Gabriel

• San Marino

• San Pedro

• Santa Clarita

• San Fernando

• Santa Fe Springs

• Santa Monica

• South El Monte

• South Pasadena

• South Gate

• Stevenson Ranch

• Studio City

• Temple City

• Thousand Oaks

• Valley Glen

• Valley Village

• West Hollywood

• Willow Brook

• Woodland Hills

Although it is rare for a State of California elbow injury to become serious, it does happen. This case is especially true if you don’t receive immediate medical assistance for your injury. But don’t accept an erroneous diagnosis and settle for less than a just amount before calling a personal injury attorney.

A serious elbow injury can affect your quality of life and even prevent you from going to work. In some cases, a person may suffer from a permanent disability. We can act as workers compensation attorneys or take your third party civil claims against those responsible to make sure you are fully paid and fully healed.

Schedule a Free Consultation with Ehline Law’s Elbow Injury Lawyers in Los Angeles County and City

Your best course of action is hire use for shoulder, elbow and the many injuries that occur in Los Angeles. Ehline Law Firm is an award-winning personal injury law firm in Southern California that protects the rights of downtrodden victims. If you’re suffering from shoulder and elbow claims in Los Angeles due to another’s negligence, contact us. We are ready to provide a free consultation with our experienced, compassionate elbow injury attorneys about your case.

During the initial consultation, our aggressive elbow injury attorneys will go over the facts of your case and determine whether there is a liability. In the event of negligence, our attorneys will let you know your extremely important legal options and how you can hold the negligent party responsible for your loss. If you would like to learn about your rights to receive compensation as a plaintiff or the value of your claims in your best interest, call us.

You can also visit our Los Angeles law office today to discuss forming an attorney-client relationship and other practice areas we help people with shoulder and elbow injuries win. Call for a free consultation at + (833) LETS-SUE in Los Angeles. Recovery starts today when you receive legal advice from an attorney over the phone. You can also use our contact form by entering your contact information. Habla Español.

Michael Ehline

Michael is a managing partner at the nationwide Ehline Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, APLC. He’s an inactive Marine and became a lawyer in the California State Bar Law Office Study Program, later receiving his J.D. from UWLA School of Law. Michael has won some of the world’s largest motorcycle accident settlements.

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