We Have Over 75 Years of Combined Personal Injury Experience Helping Clients With Debilitating Neck and Back Injuries

Neck and Back InjuriesDwyer Williams Cherkoss, PC has over 75 years of experience representing personal accident or injury victims who suffer severe neck and back injuries.  Neck and back injuries typically are among the most painful injuries suffered by those injured in motor vehicle accidents of all types.  Serious back and spinal injuries also are among the most debilitating injuries suffered by those involved in car accidents.  Catastrophic injuries like serious injuries of the neck and back can involve extensive rehabilitative therapy and pose a substantial economic drain on a family’s resources.  Severe back and neck injuries also inhibit the ability accident or injury victims to continue working or performing the same job functions.

Neck and back injuries are particularly common when your vehicle is rear-ended and may take weeks or even months to heal while frequently resulting in permanent pain, decreased mobility and limitations on work and your daily life activities.  Insurance adjusters are notorious for minimizing back and neck injuries by characterizing them as “soft tissue” injuries.  This is a tactic designed to persuade car accident or slip and fall accident victims to accept inappropriate settlement amounts.

Dwyer Williams Cherkoss Accident Injury Attorneys Has Offices in the Following Locations:

Bend   |   Eugene   |   Medford   |   Grants Pass   |   Roseburg   |   Portland

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Tragically, many car accident victims fall for this strategy and settle case involving neck or back injuries before those who suffer these debilitating injuries realize the extent of the accident or injury or cost of medical and rehabilitative therapy.  “Whiplash” injuries to the neck basically involve a hyper-extension or hyper-flexion accident or injury of the neck. During a motor vehicle accident, the result is often that the neck gets thrown forward and this forwards-flexion and/or backwards-extension of the neck causes a sprain or strain accident or injury to the structures within the cervical and upper thoracic spinal areas.  The impact from the collision result in the head being forced in either excessive flexion or excessive extension, and the body responds with protective reflexes that cause the muscles in the neck region to violently contract which “whips” the vehicle occupant’s head in the opposite direction.

Many people mistakenly presume that neck and back strains and sprains are relatively minor injuries which adds to the incentive to accept a quick “low-ball” settlement offer from an insurance company.  However, one study found that 75 percent of victims that suffer whiplash experience symptoms as much as six months after the auto accident or that caused the victim’s neck accident or injury.  The average person who suffers such a “soft tissue” accident or injury to the neck in the form of whiplash caused by an accident like a car crash or slip and fall typically miss an average of two months of work.

The time involved in recovery from a back sprain or strain depends on a number of factors that include the following:

  • The seriousness of the accident or injury and severity of the damage
  • The intensity of the impact during and type of motion during the accident
  • Seat belt use
  • Any pre-existing injuries or weakness
  • The height and position of any head rests
  • How promptly medical attention was sought
  • Strength and size of the accident victim’s cervical musculature
  • The mass, weight and velocity of the vehicles and resulting force generated by the collision
  • Faithful follow through on medical treatment an therapy
  • The accident or injury victim’s age, health and physical condition

Back strains or sprains, or so-called “soft tissue” injuries of the back, can be equally if not more debilitating.  A sprain or strain of the back occurs when the ligaments are stretched so that they exceed their maximum range of motion and can result in a tear.  These injuries of the back often result in excruciating pain and debilitating spasms.  The experienced neck and back pain attorneys at Dwyer Williams Cherkoss, PC will protect your from insurance companies that are simply trying to save money and deny you the compensation that you deserve for you neck and back sprain injuries.

Much more serious and debilitating back injuries involve herniated disc injuries, which are common in violent automobile accidents particularly rear-end collisions. The stress of the impact on an auto accident victim’s spinal column often results in an accident or injury to a segment of the spinal structure (called a disc) that separates your back bones or vertebrae.  This type of accident or injury causes the disc to shift or causes the hard outer surface of the disc to rupture.  Spinal injuries of this type are sometimes called slipped or ruptured discs.  These disc structures may intrude into the spinal channel and place pressure on the spinal nerves that may result in severe back, neck and leg pain. If you experience sharp pain in any of these parts of your body following a car accident after an automobile accident, it is important to seek immediate medical care.

Back injuries caused by slipped discs can have severe permanent affects and result in a lifetime of pain as well as limitations on employment and daily activities.  It is essential to seek immediate medical advice if you are experienced any neck or back pain after an accident including an Oregon car crash or trip and fall accident.  The promptness of medical treatment can have a significant impact on the seriousness of one’s injuries and impact the time required for recovery.  A doctor should take scan including x-ray, MRI or CT scans that can provide critical evidence of the severity and nature of the images caused by your auto accident, which can be used to meet the inevitable allegations of the insurance company that you are malingering or exaggerating your injuries.

At Dwyer William Attorneys, PC, we are dedicated to helping Oregon accident victims who suffer serious neck and back pain recover the compensation that they need to get back to their life.  We are committed to helping Oregon car accident accident or injury victims obtain financial compensation for the physical pain and emotional stress caused by the severe pain and debilitation of neck and back injuries.  Our experienced legal team will help you ensure that an insurance company simply trying to reduce profits does not cheat you.