Personal Injury

Published on: February 19, 2011

What Atlanta Accident Victims Can Expect after a Burn Injury

Last week, the American Burn Association commemorated National Burn Awareness Week, to highlight the dangers to children and adults from fire and burn hazards. Although the focus of the American Burn Association tends to be towards household burn hazards, Atlanta injury attorneys often come across victims who have suffered serious burn injuries in car accidents, truck accidents, and workplace accidents.

Burn injuries are easily some of the most traumatic injuries that a person can suffer. A burn injury victim can expect severe pain over the short-term, and scarring, paralysis and impaired nerve function over the long-term. The hours and days after a serious burn injury can be critical for a patient. In such cases, the skin may have been severely burned down to the deeper layers, and the patient may be at a high risk of infections.

Once the patient is discharged from the hospital, he or she could be looking at a long period of taking care of the injury and the wound site. The patient will have to be on medication for a few weeks, and will be asked to be on plenty of fluids. The injury site will be cleaned periodically, and, patients will have to take care to avoid contamination of the wound.

Published on: February 19, 2011

Infant Killed in Atlanta Truck Accident

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

A six-month-old infant, who had sustained critical injuries in a Cobb County, Georgia truck accident, has succumbed to his injuries. Cobb County police have charged the truck driver involved in the truck accident. Any injury and death in a truck accident is sad, but that is especially true when such a young life is lost.

The accident occurred over the weekend, when tractor trailer driver Henry Lipps crashed his rig into the rear of a car. In the car were a couple and their six-month-old baby, strapped into his car seat. Both parents were injured, and taken to the Atlanta Medical Center. The baby suffered critical injuries, and was taken to Scottish Rite Hospital. He succumbed to his injuries earlier this week

Investigators believe that the tractor-trailer driver failed to brake, and crashed into three separate vehicles, including the GMC Arcadia, Toyota Highlander and a Buick LeSabre at the Windy Hill Road exit. The driver of the LeSabre and his passenger also suffered visible injuries, and were rushed to Grady Memorial Hospital.

Published on: February 18, 2011

Motorcycle Helmets May Reduce Risk of Cervical Spine Injuries from Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Atlanta motorcycle accident lawyers strongly recommend wearing a helmet to reduce your risks of suffering serious or fatal injury in a motorcycle accident. It’s common knowledge that wearing helmets reduces your risk of suffering a brain injury. A new study however shows that wearing a motorcycle helmet may have even more tangible benefits for persons involved in a motorcycle accident. The results of this study prove that wearing a helmet not only reduces the risk of brain injury, but also cervical spine injury.

Researchers at the John Hopkins University School of Medicine analyzed motorcycle accident collisions between 2002 and 2006. The data came from the National Trauma Data Bank. The researchers found that there was a substantially lowered risk of cervical spine injury among motorcyclists who wore helmets. The risk was as much as 22% lower compared to persons not wearing a helmet during a crash.

According to the researchers, this puts to rest a long-held misconception that wearing motorcycle helmets increases your risk of suffering a cervical spine injury. Critics of motorcycle helmet laws have long held that wearing helmets increases the risk of suffering a neck injury, and they often cite 25-year-old studies to support their arguments. The fact is that modern helmets are not just lighter and more sophisticated, but also come with added strength and complete protection.

Published on: February 4, 2011

Difference in Perception May Increase Accident Risks among Elderly Drivers in Atlanta

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Elderly drivers in Atlanta may be plagued by a variety of health issues, like failing vision that can increase their risk of an auto accident. However, new research suggests that vision problems among the elderly may be much more complicated than simply failing eyesight. The study seems to suggest that the elderly have trouble seeing objects in the foreground, which increases the risk of an accident with pedestrians and bicyclists. Of course, pedestrian accidents and bicycle accidents generally result in extremely serious injuries.

The study was conducted at the University of Rochester, and found that older people have impaired activity in the medial temporal visual area of the brain. This part of the brain suppresses movement in the background, so that the person can focus clearly on objects in the foreground. In elderly people, this section of the brain may be impaired. They may find it easy to perceive movement in the background, but not so easy to see objects that are in the foreground. That is why Atlanta car accident attorneys so often find elderly motorists involved in accidents with pedestrians and bicyclists.

The researchers used a technique called Transcranial Magnetics Stimulation, which involved attaching a magnetic card to the subject’s head, and measuring the activity of the MT area of the brain. The MT area was stimulated using electrical signals, and the researchers analyzed how well the subjects in the study identified the movement of objects. They found that when the MT area of the brain was impaired, the person could readily and easily identify objects in the background.

Published on: January 18, 2011

Employers Move to Minimize Risk of Distracted Driver Auto Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

As Atlanta car accident attorneys, we believe minimizing texting or talking on the cell phone while driving requires cooperation not just from individual motorists, but also from society at large. To avoid as many car accidents as possible, employers have a big role to play in ensuring that their employees refrain from using a cell phone while driving. A new survey by the National Safety Council finds that one out of every five Fortune 500 companies has a policy in place that prevents employees from using cell phones while driving. These policies have a significant impact in decreasing the number of distracted driving auto accidents.

There have been increasing signs that more and more employers are taking the need for such workplace policies seriously. Out of the companies that responded to the survey, more than 50% had implemented such safety policies since 2008.

It was the federal administration which kick started the initiative to encourage employers to implement anti-distracted driving policies in the workplace. In 2009, the Obama administration announced a ban on cell phone use while driving for federal employees while driving government-issued vehicles, and using government-issued cell phones. Since then, private employers have followed suit, encouraging employees to switch off their cell phones while driving. Encouraging employers to implement such policies has become more important since the economy began sinking. Employees now are under more pressure than ever to stay constantly in touch with the office, even while driving.

Published on: December 22, 2010

Icy Weather Blamed for More Than 600 Auto Accidents in Gwinnett County, Georgia

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Close to 600 auto accidents in Gwinnett County, Georgia, last week were blamed on hazardous road conditions caused by icy roads. These accidents included a 15-car pileup on Peachtree Industrial Boulevard. Fortunately, none of these auto accidents ended in fatalities.

However, according to police, at least nine accidents resulted in occupants becoming trapped in their vehicles. They were 27 hit-and-run accidents reported. There was also at least one pedestrian accident that ended with injuries. In Cherokee County alone, police handled more than 300 accident cases. Meanwhile, in the metro Atlanta area, roadways were shut down, and schools were closed as a precautionary measure.

The hazardous road conditions were created after a mass of Arctic air collided with the moist air, creating a thin coating of ice on the roadways. Emergency rescue departments in Gwinnett County found themselves overwhelmed with thousands of calls for rescue, not just from accident victims, but also calls related to structure and wood fires.

Published on: December 13, 2010

Auto Accident Victims with Spinal Cord Injuries Find hope in Stem Cell Trial

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Spinal cord injuries, which frequently occur during auto accidents, truck accidents and motorcycle accidents, are one of the most life-altering injuries. There is no complete cure for spinal cord injuries, but there have been very encouraging developments in possible therapies for spinal cord injury, all of them involving the use of stem cells. A California-based company has announced that it has received approval to begin nerve stem cell trials into the treatment of spinal cord injury. This study provides a reason for hope for auto accident victims who suffered this injury.

The trials will be conducted in Switzerland. Researchers believe that the country offers greater patient referral networks and a higher expertise of professionals. However, that isn’t only how these stem cell trials will differ from others. These are believed to be the first trials that will focus on treatment of older or chronic spinal cord injuries.

Earlier this year, another company, Geron Corporation announced the world’s first embryonic stem cell clinical trials into the treatment of spinal cord injuries. Those trials are partly being conducted in Atlanta. However, those trials will only focus on new spinal cord injuries. These Swiss trials will focus on injuries that are between three and 12 months older, and if these treatments are successful, it will offer hope to the more than 2 million spinal cord injury patients in the US, who currently live with these injuries. The Swiss trial researchers believe that older spinal cord injuries have been ignored, and too much of the research is focused on fresh injuries.

Published on: December 12, 2010

Study Shows Increase in Serious Dog Bite Injuries

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

A new study shows an increase in the numbers of people being hospitalized after suffering a dog bite. Statisticians from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality looked at dog bite data between 1993 and 2008. They found that the number of people who needed hospitalization after a dog bite actually grew by 86%.

In 1993, 5,100 people had to be rushed to the hospital after a dog bite, and that number ballooned to 9,500 cases in 2008. Every day, an approximate 856 Americans are forced to seek emergency treatment after a dog bite. Of these, an average of 26 are admitted to the hospital for treatment of their injuries.

Other findings from the study:

Published on: December 3, 2010

Increased Risk of Auto Accidents with Georgia Winter

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Last year, Atlanta motorists were treated to an unusual experience – sudden and unexpected snowstorms that contributed to icy roads, poor visibility and an increased number of auto accidents, truck accidents and motorcycle accidents. Since Atlanta and Georgia in general only gets a snowstorm once every year or two, motorists are unable to deal with suddenly slippery conditions and accidents result. Winter has already begun much earlier than usual in some parts of Georgia, and it’s important for drivers to be prepared for any sudden change in weather conditions that can increase the risks of accidents.

Extreme winter weather means ice, snow and sleet on the roads, creating increasingly slippery conditions. Motorists driving in such conditions are much more likely to lose control of their vehicles. Even worse, if your car not been prepared for driving through snow, you can expect a breakdown. Stay safe this winter by being prepared for extreme weather.

Make sure that your car is primed for winter driving. Fluid levels, particularly anti-freeze fluids, must be topped. Keep your gas tank as full as possible. Last year’s snowstorms caught everybody by surprise.

Published on: December 3, 2010

Medical Lien Secrets Every Injured Car Accident Victim Should Know

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

A number of personal injury victims sign medical liens every year.The victims often times do not know the consequences that a lien can have on their personal injury settlement.Signing a medical lien could be a fatal mistake that can wreck your personal injury claim.

Receive Treatment for Your Injuries

Whatever your case may be (lien or no lien) it is important to receive treatment and continue that treatment if necessary.Your recovery is critical to you and your family.Receiving treatment will help to ensure your injuries do not get worse after your accident.