Hip Injuries

A car crash can result in a significant level of trauma to a person’s body. Due to the force of impact involved in a collision, hip injuries and hip pain are quite common after a serious auto accident. The hip is an extremely complex joint that controls the movement of the entire lower half of your body. Thus, hip injuries caused by motor vehicle accidents can be extremely difficult to recover from, and can limit your ability to walk, exercise, and perform basic, weight-bearing activities. Those that suffer from these types of injuries are far more likely to require serious medical attention, and their bodies may never be the same afterwards. In these situations, an experienced Rhode Island Car Accident Attorney can help victims recover the full compensation that they deserve for a hip injury including medical bills, lost wages due to time missed from work for medical treatment, physical therapy costs, and future surgery the injury may necessitate.

The hips bear much of our body’s weight load on a daily basis. As a result, a hip injury resulting from a collision can manifest with painful symptoms. As with many car accident injuries, some symptoms may be evident right away, while others may not appear until days after the accident. Symptoms of hip pain may be mild or severe and may include, but are not limited to:

• Limping
• Joint or groin pain
• Loss of motion in the hip
• Warmth, swelling, or tenderness
• Difficulty sleeping on the hip
• Inability to walk or bear body weight
• Severe pain or stiffness

With over 20 years of experience as a car accident lawyer in Rhode Island, David Tapalian has helped hundreds of hurt people and always advises seeking medical treatment right away after any type of accident regardless of the severity of your symptoms.

Hip injuries are routinely associated with the elderly, who may suffer a slip and fall, or intense athletes who injure themselves during game action. However, an injury to the hip can happen to anyone, regardless of age or health history. Below are some of the most common hip injuries that result from auto accidents, and how they occur.

• Strains: A strain can occur when the trauma from a car collision stretches or tears the muscle fibers in a victim’s hip. Though this injury does not require surgery, victims are often in severe pain due to the swelling of the muscles.
• Dislocation: Posterior hip dislocations can happen in a crash when a victim slams their brakes in an attempt to avoid a collision. This can cause locked knees, and a locked leg, which can travel up to the hip socket, forcing a dislocation of the femur. This is more common when speeding is involved. Extreme pain may occur and walking or standing will likely be impossible right after this type of injury.
• Fractures: Common in severe front-end collisions, or T-Bone accidents, the blunt force to the side of the hip or the knees hitting the dashboard, can result in a high level of trauma to a victim’s hip. There are three divisions of the hip bone, including the ilium, ischium, and pubis, where the fracture may occur. Rhode Island Car Accident Lawyer David Tapalian has worked with countless auto accident victims who have suffered a hip injury and can attest that fractures are among the most complex and intensive injuries for victims and often require extensive hospital treatment, surgery, and time off from work.

The treatment and recovery for a hip injury following a motor vehicle accident varies drastically depending on the severity of the injury, location of the injury within the hip, and the individual. According to orthopedic specialists, there’s no single treatment plan for a hip injury, but rather a wide variety. Treatment may include a combination of physical therapy, surgery, medication, and activity modifications. The majority of doctors and specialists have comprehensive treatment and recovery plans that are specifically customized to the individual’s injury and condition. If you don’t know where to go for your hip treatment, the experts at Tapalian Law can refer you to top local Rhode Island doctors and physical therapists to ensure you receive the personalized care you deserve.

It’s important to remember that for any injury, the most successful and effective treatments are those that begin right away. As a seasoned car accident attorney in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, one of the biggest mistakes that Attorney Tapalian sees victims make is taking multiple days, or even weeks, following a car accident before seeking medical attention. Some patients believe their injury is not serious enough to require treatment, or worry that treatment is too expensive and they won’t be able to afford an expensive hospital bill. However, seeking immediate medical consultation can actually be highly beneficial to your personal injury case, and the experts at Tapalian Law can often recover compensation to cover all of your medical costs and then some.

It’s important to talk with an experienced lawyer if you’ve suffered a hip injury due to a car accident in RI or MA. No victim of a serious crash should try to work through a personal injury case alone. Without proper legal representation, hurt victims may lose thousands of dollars in medical bills, lost wages, and other expenses for which they deserve to be compensated. Insurance companies make filing a car accident claim complicated, but trusted Accident Attorney David Tapalian and his dedicated team of professionals take pride in helping injury victims like you seek justice. With a main office in Providence, we are easily accessible for a free consultation to anyone in the Rhode Island and Massachusetts areas. If you are unable to travel to us because you are hurt, we will visit you in your home or at the hospital. There is a three-year statute of limitations to file a personal injury claim after a car accident in Rhode Island, so contact Attorney David Tapalian as soon as possible at 401-552-5000 or contact us online to set up a free consultation.