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What’s the Difference Between a Catastrophic Injury and a Minor Injury?

It’s clear that some injuries you may sustain in a slip and fall, work accident, or other situation are minor. Bruises and scrapes, for example, may be mildly annoying but you will generally fully recover from them and will not need medical care or time away from work.

Other injuries, such as traumatic brain injuries, or paralysis, can change the entire trajectory of your life. If you have suffered this kind of severe injury and would like to talk about how you can protect your future, contact Flaxman Law Group for a free consultation with a Hollywood accident attorney. Your consultation costs you nothing and comes with no obligation.

What are Catastrophic Injuries in Hollywood?

In Hollywood, FL, common catastrophic injuries that lead to legal claims include:

  • Spinal cord injury. This type of injury can leave you unable to walk and in some cases unable to breathe on your own. Serious spinal cord injuries may require a lifetime of around-the-clock care.
  • Traumatic head injury. Serious head injuries can permanently affect your memory, cognitive function, and personality, making it difficult or impossible to return to work.
  • Mental health conditions. Serious injuries or traumatic events such as assaults or traffic accidents can lead to PTSD or debilitating depression, which can make it difficult to function.
  • Amputations. With advanced prosthetics, it’s possible to live a better quality of life after losing a limb, but the lifetime costs of these devices are significant and the loss of a limb still impacts a person’s life permanently.
  • Facial injuries. Severe facial scarring and any facial injuries that affect your ability to speak, eat, or see can affect your life and career prospects permanently.
  • Burns. Severe burns can cause mobility issues and scarring that can impact your mental health, career, and daily life.
  • Crushing injuries. Crushing injuries can cause amputation or loss of mobility. They can make it hard to complete daily tasks, care for yourself independently, or do many jobs.
  • Sensory loss. Losing your hearing, vision, or other senses can affect your enjoyment of life and quality of life.

In any of these cases, seeking fair compensation is important because your lifetime medical and care costs as well as your loss of income can be significant. If you have suffered a catastrophic injury, you may want to consult with a Hollywood accident lawyer to discuss your options.

A Word of Warning About Minor Injuries

Even if you think you have only suffered minor injuries, it’s important to carefully consider your future. What sometimes happens after a serious injury is that an injured person will apply for workers’ compensation (in case of a workplace injury) or will seek insurance only to find out later that their injury is more serious than they at first believed. They may have been initially misdiagnosed. Or a simple injury became more serious because of complications. In some cases, insurance companies settle quickly, before the full scope of your injury is known.

For all these reasons, it’s important not to dismiss an injury as “minor.” Always get a full medical evaluation and follow up if an injury isn’t healing. And before you make any decisions to accept an insurance offer, consider getting legal advice. You can always call 866-352-9626 to reach the family-based legal team at Flaxman Law Group to set up a free consultation with a Hollywood accident lawyer. We can answer your questions and talk about how much your potential claim could really be worth.

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