Insurance adjusters will tell you that carpal tunnel syndrome is a repetitive stress injury and that it cannot by caused be a car accident.
Baloney. Car accidents can absolutely cause carpal tunnel syndrome. Our attorneys have handled many cases over the years in which a client suffered carpal tunnel syndrome as a result of an auto accident.
In a recent case we handled, our client's car was rear-ended and pushed into the car ahead of her. At the scene of the accident, she experienced tingling in her left arm from her shoulder to her fingertips. She noticed loss of grip strength in her left hand: she had difficulty opening the car door with her left hand and difficulty removing her wallet from her purse. Six months later, our client underwent electrodiagnostic testing which revealed carpal tunnel syndrome.
WHAT IS CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME?
Carpal tunnel syndrome involves pain and numbness and tingling in the hand, fingers and wrist because of pressure on the median nerve in the wrist. The pain can be so intense that it wakes you up at night. The median nerve and several tendons run from the forearm to the hand through a small space in the wrist called the carpal tunnel. The median nerve controls movement and feeling in the thumb and first three fingers.
CAN CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME BE CAUSED BY A CAR ACCIDENT?
Yes, medical literature is replete with studies connecting carpal tunnel syndrome to an auto accident. The mechanism of injury can be blunt trauma from the steering wheel or dashboard in a front or rear-end collision.
If you have suffered carpal tunnel syndrome as a result of a car accident, do not buy into the insurance adjuster's contention that carpal tunnel syndrome cannot be caused by an auto accident. You should speak with a Los Angeles auto accident attorney who has experience handling carpal tunnel syndrome cases. We can refer you to a medical provider who will treat you on a lien basis, which means that you don't pay until your case settles. We can even arrange for carpal tunnel release surgery on a lien. Call McGee, Lerer & Associates for a free consultation: (800) 999-9948.