Pittsburgh Personal Injury Blog

Car accidents can cause hidden spine injuries

On behalf of Ainsman Levine, LLC posted in spinal cord injuries on Tuesday, December 31, 2019.

Experiencing a car accident is always dangerous, even when the impact of a collision is relatively minor. Many of us are so familiar with driving and riding in traffic that it is easy to forget how forceful a car accident is. In many cases, a victim may suffer injuries that they do not recognize at first, including head injuries, organ damage, and nerve and spinal damage.

After you experience a car accident, it is wise to have your doctor or some other qualified medical professional give you a full medical examination. Not only does this create important medical documentation that can protect your rights later on, it may also identify injuries before you feel them.

Preventing ladder injuries at work

On behalf of Ainsman Levine, LLC posted in workers' compensation on Thursday, December 26, 2019.

If you work in any type of construction job, you probably have plenty of experience with ladders. However, experience may not protect you from a serious fall and significant injuries.

Approximately 90,000 people end up in the emergency room every year due to ladder-related accidents -- many of them with broken bones, twisted backs or traumatic brain injuries. Around 700 people die from elevated falls.

Whiplash is a serious injury you may not feel immediately

On behalf of Ainsman Levine, LLC on Friday, December 20, 2019.

Car accidents cause many different injuries, and many of them are not easy to identify. Often, car accident victims leave the scene of the collision believing that they did not suffer injuries at all, only to realize later that they suffered injuries that do not cause immediate pain.

If you experienced a car accident recently, you may have whiplash injuries that make it difficult to operate in your daily life. After any car accident, it is always wise to undergo a complete medical examination administered by a doctor or other qualified medical professional. The sooner that you identify any hidden injuries, the sooner you can receive the treatment that you need to begin your recovery and pursue fair compensation.

Follow the orders of your medical team after a concussion

On behalf of Ainsman Levine, LLC on Wednesday, December 18, 2019.

Even if you don't strike your head extremely hard, you could still suffer a concussion. If this happens, you could experience a variety of side effects, ranging from unconsciousness to dizziness and vomiting.

The most important thing you can do is obtain immediate medical treatment, as this gets you in touch with a doctor who can run the appropriate diagnostic tests. From there, if it's confirmed that you have a concussion, your doctor can work with you to implement a treatment schedule that suits your life.

Don't let a pre-existing condition stop your injury lawsuit

On behalf of Ainsman Levine, LLC posted in personal injury on Friday, December 13, 2019.

Personal injury claims get their start in many ways. Maybe you were in a car accident while trying to make it out of the shopping mall's parking lot during the holiday rush. Perhaps you slipped on ice in the lobby of the hotel where you were staying for Thanksgiving. Maybe you were hit by a drunk driver when you were driving home.

Whatever the cause, you can generally expect the insurance company for the other party to try to downplay your injuries or dismiss your claim outright based on any pre-existing condition you may have. They may say that your injured back is unrelated to your car accident because you already had degenerative arthritis in your spine. They may say that the problem with your hip had nothing to do with your recent fall because you had a fall several years earlier.

Watch out for road rage during the colder months

On behalf of Ainsman Levine, LLC on Thursday, December 5, 2019.

Getting around in winter is one of the most frustrating things people deal with each year. There is a massive increase in the number of people on the roads because of the holidays and breaks from school. Travel can be extremely slow. Congested roads add to the delays, and traffic jams can be common in cities and on highways.

For the most part, people take these issues in stride, but there is one thing that you have to watch out for: road rage. Road rage can turn a slow drive into a terrifying drive as a driver tries to weave in and out of lanes, rides too closely to you to stop safely if you have to slow down or behaves in other reckless ways.

What kind of injury risks do private hospital workers face?

On behalf of Ainsman Levine, LLC posted in workers' compensation on Friday, November 29, 2019.

Data compiled by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in 2017 captured how private hospital work is particularly dangerous. BLS researchers determined that six out of over 100 full-time workers in this industry are hurt on the job. This injury rate can be likened to other more traditionally dangerous job roles. The nonfatal illnesses or injuries that occur in these types of facilities are varied.

Overexertion and bodily reaction injuries accounted for at least 45.1% of all nonfatal worker injuries that occurred at private hospitals in 2015. Slips, trips and falls were found to be to blame for at least 24.8% of workers who were hurt in these same types of facilities that same year.

Cold weather doesn’t slow down bicycle commuters in Pittsburgh

On behalf of Ainsman Levine, LLC on Tuesday, November 19, 2019.

When winter weather moves into Pittsburgh, temperatures drop and snow is seemingly always in the forecast. While this change alters the life of many residents throughout the area, some continue to commute to and from work on their bicycle.

As someone commuting on their bicycle during the cold winter months, here are several tips to follow:

Keep an eye on the sky: Is there snow in the forecast? How about rain or ice? Or maybe fog? Cold temperatures are one thing, but precipitation is a different beast entirely. For instance, icy roadways require special caution to avoid a situation in which your tires skid out from under you.
Wear the appropriate gear: Regardless of the time of year, you'll want to wear a helmet at a minimum. During the winter months, it's essential to wear warmer clothing, without restricting your movement.
Watch for distracted drivers: Cold weather can distract drivers in a number of ways. Maybe someone is on their phone to check the forecast for the drive home. Or maybe someone is struggling to see the road ahead because they didn't clear their windshield. If you spot a distracted driver, take special caution to prevent trouble.
Pedestrians are dangerous, too: Winter weather has a way of distracting pedestrians, as they only care about one thing: getting to their destination as quickly as possible. This can cause them to make mistakes, such as walking in a bicycle lane or neglecting to look twice before crossing the road.
Get off and walk your bike: If road conditions turn dangerous while you're on the saddle, jump off your bike and walk it to your destination. Sure, it may slow you down, but safety always comes first.

Defendant in lawsuit claims plaintiff got the wrong company

On behalf of Ainsman Levine, LLC posted in personal injury on Friday, November 15, 2019.

If you've been hurt recently, chances are that you didn't feel the need to sue anyone over the cause. Injuries can happen for countless accidental reasons, and insurance among other supports is there to help people recover from the consequences. Lawsuits regarding personal injury need some specific relation between the defendant and the cause of the pain and damage.

It all comes down to liability. The two main forms of liability when it comes to personal injuries involve people doing things they should not have done and people who did not do things they should have done.

A hip fracture typically requires surgery

On behalf of Ainsman Levine, LLC on Tuesday, November 5, 2019.

When you arrive at work, the last thing you're thinking about is the safety of your hips. However, depending on your profession, you may be at risk of suffering a hip fracture among a variety of other injuries.

If you injure your hip on the job, such as the result of a slip-and-fall or fall from height, you may have concerns about a potential fracture. This is even more so the case in the event of extreme pain, discomfort in the area, the inability to walk and swelling.