Leg Injury Solicitors - Accident Compensation Claim Lawyers

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In most cases this injury will not have been caused by a car accident however there is a significant proportion that is a direct result of motor vehicle collisions. Road traffic accidents are a major cause of traumatic injury and represent more than half of all cases handled by personal injury solicitors. Our solicitors deal with serious leg injury compensation claims. If you have sustained a leg injury in an accident that was caused by someone else's negligence then you may be able to claim compensation. Our leg injury solicitors take cases on a no win no fee basis, which means they only get paid if you get paid. There are no upfront costs and you do not have to fund or finance your leg injury compensation claim as it proceeds. Contact our leg injury solicitors today for legal advice at no cost about your compensation claim with no further obligation.

Negligence and Leg Injury Claims

Common causes of serious leg injuries include road traffic collisions, falls from height and workplace accidents. To succeed in a leg injury compensation claim it is necessary to prove negligence by a third party. Negligence is defined as failing to take reasonable steps to ensure the safety of a person to whom you owe a duty of care. For a claim based on negligence to be successful it is necessary for a leg injury solicitor to show the duty of care and that breach of that duty caused the accident and subsequent physical damage.

Calculating Damages

Calculating damages for pain and suffering in a leg injury compensation claim is a complex matter. Numerous factors must be considered and the victim must present evidence to substantiate their claim. A judge's decision is dictated by judicial guidelines and case law however it is also tempered by the judge's own experience and after hearing representaions from the applicants leg injury soliicitor.

Broken Leg Injury

A broken leg is a common incident often occurring in traumatic accidents such as vehicle collisions, accidents at work and slip, trips and falls. The potential injuries can be categorised as follows :-

  • dislocations (bone out of joint)
  • sprains - stretches and tears of ligaments
  • strains - stretches and tears of muscles (e.g. pulled muscle)
  • muscle overuse injuries (e.g. shin splints of lower leg)
  • muscle bruise from a direct blow
  • bone bruise from a direct blow
  • amputations
  • fractures (broken bones)

A leg is usually broken because of the application of severe external force as in motor vehicle collisions, accidents involving a fall from height and occasionally from slips, trips and falls. If any of these accidents involves the negligence of another person then it may be possible to make a broken leg compensation claim.

There are numerous possible locations for a broken bone in the leg including :-

  • The femur is the main bone in the thigh. It is the longest and strongest bone of the body.
  • The lower end of the femur rests on top of the tibia, forming the knee joint.
  • The kneecap (patella) glides back and forth in front of the knee joint.
  • The tibia is the shinbone and supports the body's weight. The fibula runs alongside the tibia below the knee.
  • The ankle is composed of the bottom ends of the tibia and fibula, the connecting foot bones, and the ligaments and tendons. Severe twisting injuries to the ankle can result in fractures of the tibia or fibula near or within the ankle joint.

The major symptoms are :-

  • Severe pain. Holding the bone still will decrease pain. Movement of the broken bone will increase pain.
  • Swelling and bruising over the area of a break are common.
  • Deformity can occur in various forms, including :-

    • Shortening: On the side of the break.
    • Rotation: Twisting deformity below the break.
    • Angulation: Bending at the break instead of at the joint.

Your doctor will order x-rays which will show the type of fracture you have. The type and location of a break will determine what treatment is needed. A plaster splint or cast is often used to immobilise the bone.

Surgery is often needed and pins, screws and metal plates or wires are frequently used to hold together the broken ends of a bone. For fractures in the middle part of the thighbone or the shinbone, a metal rod is sometimes placed down through the center of the bone during surgery.

Leg Amputations & The Mangled Extremity Severity Score

With incomplete amputations and severely damaged limbs, the surgeon is faced with decision of whether or not to amputate the limb. While the ideal outcome is to save the patient's limb, but this is not always possible. There are times when repeated attempts at reattachment are not in the patient's best interest. For example, the extent of the injury may be so severe that a prosthesis would provide superior functionality, or a reattachment operation may be too great a risk to the patient's health.

To help determine whether or not reattachment is likely to be successful, doctors use a tool called the "Mangled Extremity Severity Score" (MESS). The MESS is a scoring system that provides surgeons with a way to assess the chances that a limb can be salvaged. The score is based on four criteria: skeletal/soft tissue injury, limb ischaemia, shock and the patient's age. Each component is "graded" and assigned an appropriate number. All four numbers are added together to reach the final score. A MESS score of less than 7 is a good indication that the limb can be successfully salvaged.

Leg Injury Solicitors

If you have suffered physically, mentally or financially, you should consider making an accident compensation claim. For telephone advice at no cost from specialist personal injury solicitors just call the helpline. Our leg injury solicitors will assess the strength of your claim and will advise you on your potential award of compensation without any further obligation. Receiving a consultation does not obligate you to proceed with your claim. There is no charge for the lawyers advice, regardless of whether you decide to take further action.

Leg Injury Overview

Leg injuries can involve injuries to the leg from the hip to the toes It can involve a bony injury, such as a fracture, a muscle injury, such as a strain or a ligamentous injury, or a ligamentous injury, called a sprain.

The various leg injuries include fractures (bones broken), dislocations of the hip, knee or ankle, sprains, which affect the ligamentous injuries. These can disrupt or just stretch the ligament. They can involve strains or tearing of the muscles, muscle overuse injury, particularly in exercise and a muscle bruise, which involves a direct blow to the muscle. A bone bruise can be caused by direct injury to the bone. The most common causes of leg injuries include motor vehicle accidents, falls, assaults or sports injuries.

The pain can be mild and not interfere with regular daily activities. It can be moderate and interfere with your daily activities or awaken you from sleep. It can be severe, meaning it is excruciating and interferes with all your daily activities, making it difficult to sleep without severe pain.

You may need to go by ambulance to see the emergency room specialist if you have serious injuries with multiple areas of fracture. Major bleeding is another reason to see the doctor immediately. You should see your doctor within twenty four hours or sooner if you think you have a fracture or dislocation. If you have a large area of bruising or swelling or if the skin is pale or blue around the injury, you need to see the doctor fairly soon. If the injury happens to a young child, see the doctor right away. If the pain is severe, you need to see the doctor. If you cannot stand or walk, seek medical advice or if you have a limp. If you cannot move a joint, you need to see a doctor fairly soon.

Types of injuries include a fracture or dislocation of the hip due to a fall or motor vehicle accident. You can fracture the femur or disrupt the knee in some way. Knee injuries can involve ligamentous, meniscal or bony injury to the knee. You can fracture your tibia or fibula due to a fall or other injury. The tibia can become injured in whats known as a shin splint, which is a stress fracture to the tibia. The fibula is usually injured at the level of the ankle from and inversion injury (inward turning) of the ankle.

The diagnosis of an injury to the leg involves a careful history and physical examination of the leg. The leg is examined for dislocation injuries as well as for bruising at the site of the injury. The range of motion of the joints is examined for abnormalities. Pain is assessed at all levels of the leg and the ability of the individual to walk is assessed. X-rays are done to check for bony injury of the leg and an MRI exam can tell if the muscles or ligaments are affected. Tendons are examined by MRI exam and by physical exam to see if they have been overly stretched or transected.

There is significant home care for minor leg injuries. You can treat pulled muscles, bruised muscles and bruised bones by applying ice and/or heat to the affected area. Acetaminophen, ibuprofen or naproxen can be used to control pain. Ibuprofen seems to work the best for this kind of pain. Cold packs are applied in the first twenty four hours to reduce swelling and bleeding of the affected area. You repeat ice every twenty minutes for a total of four consecutive hours and then repeat while awake.

Local heat is applied to sprained muscles after 48 hours for about ten minutes three times a day. This helps the blood dissolve and bruising disappears faster. You need to rest the affected area as much as possible and gently stretch the muscles as they heal.

For knee pain, use the RICE method, which stands for rest, ice, compression of the knee and elevation of the knee. Use an ace bandage to wrap the knee in a mildly flexed position and stay off your feet. Cold packs should be applied for twenty minutes out of every hour. Use crutches or a walker to get around if you need to and don't put much pressure on the foot. Use Tylenol or Advil for pain and inflammation. Swelling is worse after two to three days but will go down after two weeks if treated properly.

Doctors can treat the leg injury by immobilizing the entire leg in a cast or a splint. Splints are good for ankle or knee injuries that are not fractures and can be removed when you sleep or to apply ice to the affected area. Casts are applied for fractures below the knee or at the level of the knee. Surgery is usually done to fix fractures of the femur or of the hip joint itself.

LAWYER HELPLINE: 1800 339 958


The author of the substantive medical writing on this website is Dr. Christine Traxler MD whose biography can be read here