Bergen County Personal Injury Lawyer - Automobile Accidents

Back Pain - Injury or Accident

Donald Caminiti — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 12:57:21 GMT

11/04 Neuroscience article shows objectively that those in chronic pain have resultant cortical atrophy. i.e. the brain shrinks. Great article. It is not the only one, by the way. Here is abstract:

1: J Neurosci. 2004 Nov 17;24(46):10410-5.

Chronic back pain is associated with decreased prefrontal and thalamic gray
matter density.

Apkarian AV, Sosa Y, Sonty S, Levy RM, Harden RN, Parrish TB, Gitelman DR.

Department of Physiology and Institute of Neuroscience, Northwestern University
Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois 60611, USA.
a-apkarian@northwestern.edu

The role of the brain in chronic pain conditions remains speculative. We
compared brain morphology of 26 chronic back pain (CBP) patients to matched
control subjects, using magnetic resonance imaging brain scan data and automated
analysis techniques. CBP patients were divided into neuropathic, exhibiting pain
because of sciatic nerve damage, and non-neuropathic groups. Pain-related
characteristics were correlated to morphometric measures. Neocortical gray
matter volume was compared after skull normalization. Patients with CBP showed
5-11% less neocortical gray matter volume than control subjects. The magnitude
of this decrease is equivalent to the gray matter volume lost in 10-20 years of
normal aging. The decreased volume was related to pain duration, indicating a
1.3 cm3 loss of gray matter for every year of chronic pain. Regional gray matter
density in 17 CBP patients was compared with matched controls using voxel-based
morphometry and nonparametric statistics. Gray matter density was reduced in
bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and right thalamus and was strongly
related to pain characteristics in a pattern distinct for neuropathic and
non-neuropathic CBP. Our results imply that CBP is accompanied by brain atrophy
and suggest that the pathophysiology of chronic pain includes thalamocortical
processes.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Donald Caminiti

Use of Cell Phone while Driving

Donald Caminiti — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 15:08:36 GMT

International Paper Co. has agreed to pay $5.2 million to settle a lawsuit that claimed the company was liable for a car crash caused by an employee who was talking on a company-provided cell phone. The plaintiff in the case eventually lost most of her arm following medical complications. Attorneys for International Paper maintained that the employee was not talking on the cell phone at the time of the accident despite witness reports to the contrary.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Donald Caminiti

Automobile Insurance

Donald Caminiti — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:44:02 GMT

The AP reported today that the Florida Insurance Commissioner suspended Allstate companies from writing new automobile insurance policies in Florida for refusing to comply fully with a subpoena from the state.

The Commissioner ended a scheduled two-day meeting Tuesday after just two hours. He reportedly was angered that Allstate officials failed to turn over some information the state requested on property coverage rates. Company officials had described the state's request as "irrelevant."

Allstate was to have provided documents into its reinsurance program and its relationship with risk modeling companies, insurance trade associations and insurance rating organizations, but instead returned a 51-page letter of objections to the state's subpoena.

"In view of Allstate's ongoing, blatant disregard of our subpoenas, I have little choice," the Commisioner said Wednesday. "Suspending their certificate of authority to write new business in our state should make my point."

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has long criticized the insurance industry for its recalcitrance in lowering property insurance rates. He praised McCarty's action against the Illinois-based carrier.

Existing policyholders will not be affected, according to the Commissioner. Allstate must continue to service their clients and its companies must make all required statutory filings including, annual and quarterly financial statements and rate filings.

The suspension applies to Allstate Insurance Co., Allstate Indemnity Co. and Allstate Property and Casualty Co., and it only suspends the companies from writing new business in Florida.

For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Car and Motorcycle Accidents.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Donald Caminiti

Punitive Damages

Donald Caminiti — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 14:15:38 GMT

A Missouri appeals court Tuesday upheld an $8 million punitive damages judgment imposed in Jackson County against State Farm Insurance.

The case involved a lawsuit filed by Johnson County residents Jennie Hampton and Marvin Vail, who accused State Farm of malicious prosecution and breach of contract.

The case began a decade ago when Hampton reported the theft of her Toyota 4Runner, which was found abandoned and burned in Miami County, Kan. State Farm declined to pay her $10,000 claim and, working through an industry investigative service, referred the case to Johnson County prosecutors, who charged Hampton and Vail with insurance fraud.

After a jury acquitted them in 2001, they filed the civil action against State Farm.

In September 2005, a Jackson County jury awarded them each $400,000. Later that year, a judge adjusted those amounts to $250,000 because of a statutory cap, and he also assessed the punitive awards.

State Farm appealed. The Court of Appeals for the Western District of Missouri upheld the judge's actions.

For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Car and Motorcycle Accidents.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Donald Caminiti

Damage CAPS

Donald Caminiti — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 10:12:17 GMT

The Toledo Blade recently reported that, In a 5-2 decision, the Ohio Supreme Court Thursday morning upheld the constitutionality of a 2004 law capping damages for pain, suffering, and other non-economic claims in personal injury and other lawsuits.

In a response to a question posed by U.S. District Court in Toledo, which is considering a federal lawsuit stemming from Johnson & Johnson's Ortho Evra birth-control patch, the court's majority found that the General Assembly had the authority to enact the law.

"Some may think limitations on certain damages to be unwise legislative policy-making, but it is beyond the authority of any court to write into the Constitution that which was not installed there by the framers and ratified by the people," wrote Chief Justice Thomas Moyer.

He was joined in the majority by Justices Evelyn Lundberg Stratton, Maureen O'Connor, Judith Lanzinger, and Robert Cupp. Justices Paul Pfieifer and Terrence O'Donnell dissented.

"If a damage cap of $250,000 is constitutional -- the majority opinion mentions the amount but never discusses it, apparently giving it no significance -- why can't the General Assembly limit damages for claims they do not favor to $100,000? Or $1,000? Or $10?" asked Justice Pfeifer, part of the now long-gone 4-3 majority that struck down a similar law in 1999.

"Under the court's reasoning, there is nothing in the Ohio Constitution that restrains the General Assembly from limiting non-economic damages to $1...," he wrote. "After today, what meaning is left in a litigant's constitutional right to have a jury determine damages?"

Justice O'Donnell opined that the General Assembly has unconstitutionally substituted its judgment for that of a jury through Senate Bill 80, opening the door for further encroachments in the future.

Melisa Arbino, of Cincinnati, suffered a series of potentially fatal blood clots in her brain and lungs in 2005 that she maintains were the result of side effects from the hormonal patch. Ortho Evra remains on the market, but its label warns that it could lead to serious side effects.

The law does not limit damages in catastrophic cases, such as those involving paralysis or loss of limb.

It also does not limit economic damages -- lost wages, medical costs, and other measurable out-of-pocket damages -- in less serious cases.

The law, however, does cap harder-to-quantify non-economic damages for such things as pain, suffering, and mental anguish at $250,000, or three times the economic damages up to a maximum of $500,000 arising out of the injury, $350,000 of which could go specifically to the injured person.

The law was backed by Ohio's business community, which cited prior decisions striking down such caps as reasons to remake the court through elections. Four justices have joined the court since the 1999 ruling.

Although not a part of this case, the ruling is likely to bolster the argument that different caps put in place under a medical malpractice tort-reform law are also constitutional.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Donald Caminiti

Shoulder Injury

Donald Caminiti — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 16:15:09 GMT

Often times, persons involved in motor vehicle accidents suffer injuries to that part of their shoulder called a rotator cuff. A rotator cuff injury can significantly limit the range of motion in one's shoulder.

Some stuff you just take for granted - like being able to pull a sweater over your head and to grab a gallon of milk from the refrigerator. And, don't forget being able to sleep comfortably for seven or eight hours. But these simple activities may have you wincing in pain if you have injured your rotator cuff.

What's the rotator cuff?
A problem of impingement
Muscles can tear

What's the rotator cuff?
The rotator cuff is a muscle group that allows people to rotate their shoulder and arm away from their body - lifting it to the front, the side and the back. The cuff also gives individuals the ability to lift their shoulders and arms over their head.

The shoulder, unlike the hip, is not a ball that fits tightly into a deep socket. The shoulder is the most moveable joint in the body, held in place by muscles and tendons. The rotator cuff is the innermost muscle group, which provides stability for the shoulder.

A problem of impingement
A common rotator cuff problem is referred to as impingement. This occurs when the rotator cuff rubs against the acromion, the outmost edge of the collarbone, and/or against the humerus bone. This inflames the bursa, a cushion-like structure between the bones. The problem is more common in a person's dominant shoulder, so an individual who is right-handed is more likely to experience impingement to his right shoulder. Symptoms include sharp pain when reaching overhead and an inability to sleep on the affected shoulder because of pain. The primary treatment is exercise to build strength and flexibility.

Muscles can tear
After years of athletic overuse, long-term heavy lifting or normal aging, the muscles which comprise the rotator cuff can become so inflamed and weakened that a tear occurs. But, tears can also occur suddenly. For example, it's not unusual to extend an outstretched arm and hand to brace a fall. Upon impact, body weight impacts into the shoulder and tears the muscle. Someone with a rotator cuff tear will certainly feel it: activities as basic as getting dressed may bring tears to the eyes. There may also be a clicking or popping sound when moving the arm.

Primary treatments for a rotator cuff injury include anti-inflammatory medications, exercise and possibly an injection of cortosteroids. Surgery may be required if more conservative treatments don't bring relief or if the tear is large. Fortunately, many of these tears can be corrected with arthroscopic surgery using a series of three small incisions around the shoulder. After surgery, patients undergo physical rehabilitation, which is critical to the best possible patient outcome.

For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Car and Motorcycle Accidents.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Donald Caminiti

Verizon Contractor Killed When Vehicle Plows Through Work Area

Chrissie Cole — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 23:47:37 GMT

A contract worker doing routine maintenance work for Verizon was killed in a car accident on Wednesday. The worker, 54, of Kearny was employed by J. Fletcher Creamer Construction Corporation.

The accident occurred just after 8:15 a.m., on Wednesday, as the man was working on replacing manhole covers on South Orange Avenue.

A vehicle driven by a 72-year-old woman, of East Orange, plowed through the work area striking the contractor. He was transported to St. Barnabas Medical Center where he was pronounced dead at 8:30 a.m.

The driver of the vehicle and a second worker were also transported to the hospital. The construction worker's injuries are not immediately known and the woman was taken for observation by authorities.

The work area was blocked off by cones. Officials believe visibility may have been a factor in the accident. The investigation is ongoing.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole