A soft tissue injury is a term that refers to damage to your muscles, tendons, and/or ligaments. These types of injuries can occur as a result of blunt force trauma, overextension, twisting, or other types of trauma.
Muscles, tendons, and ligaments are all responsible for critical bodily functions.
Muscles actually account for about one-third of the mass of your body. They provide stability and strength.
Your muscles are connected to the bones in your body by tendons. These are strong, elastic pieces of connective tissue that give muscles the ability to transmit strength to the rest of the body.
The bones in your body are held together by strong, elastic pieces of connective tissue called ligaments. Ligaments are instrumental in joint health and mobility.
When you sustain a soft tissue injury, you’re likely to experience weakness and limited mobility.
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Common Types of Soft Tissue Injuries
The term soft tissue injury actually refers to several different types of injuries that affect the muscles, tendons, and/or ligaments in the body. Here are some of the soft tissue injuries we see most frequently after accidents in Philadelphia:
Sprains
When a ligament is torn or stretched, it’s called a sprain. Since ligaments are found in our joints, sprains tend to affect the ankles, knees, hips, elbows, and shoulders.
Strains
Strains involve the stretching or tearing of muscle or tendons. This type of injury is usually the result of unusual twisting and often affects muscles that cross two joints, like the knees or neck.
Contusion
A contusion is also called a bruise, and happens when a muscle is subjected to blunt force trauma. Bruises are often identified by their purple color, which is actually blood pooling under the skin.
Tendonitis
Tendons can become inflamed when they are overused, resulting in tendonitis.
Bursitis
Bones are separated by small gel-like sacs called bursa. Bursa prevent the bones from rubbing together and creating painful friction. Bursitis occurs when these sacs become inflamed.
Whiplash
Whiplash is typically thought of as a neck injury, but it’s technically a soft tissue injury, too. That’s because whiplash involves the rapid overextension of the tendons and muscles in your neck, shoulders, and/or back.
How Are Soft Tissue Injuries Treated?
Soft tissue injuries can linger for a while if they’re not treated properly. In order to speed your physical recovery and get back to your day-to-day life, it’s important to seek medical attention and stick to a prescribed treatment regimen. Your treatment plan will ultimately depend on the type of injury you’ve sustained and how severe it is.
Common treatments for soft tissue injuries, from least to most invasive, are:
- RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation)
- Over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications
- Physical therapy, and
- Surgery.
It’s often best to limit your movement and stay off your feet for a while so that you can give your body time to rest and recovery.
What Are Common Causes of Soft Tissue Injuries?
Any traumatic event can potentially cause a soft tissue injury, including:
- Slips and fall accidents
- Workplace accidents
- Construction accidents
- Car accidents, particularly rear-end collisions
- Truck accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Nursing home abuse
- Dog bites
- Assaults
- Dangerous products, and more.
Some law firms in Philadelphia will only agree to take your case if your injuries are obviously catastrophic. At Zavodnick & Lasky Personal Injury Lawyers, we appreciate that all injuries can be catastrophic and detrimental in their own ways. So, do not hesitate to give our law office a call for help with your soft tissue injury case.
What Compensation is Available For a Soft Tissue Injury?
Damages that might be available in your soft tissue injury case could include money for:
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Temporary and/or permanent disability
- Lost wages
- Medical expenses
- Rehabilitation, and more.
Our team will consult with reputable experts from in and around Philadelphia County. We’ll have them explain your soft tissue injury, detail how it affects your day-to-day life, and ask them to project how it could impact things for you days, weeks, or months in the future. We’ll attempt to fully appreciate the extent of your injury so that we can get make sure your case is valued properly.
What’s the Statute of Limitations for Soft Tissue Injury Lawsuits in Pennsylvania?
When you get into an accident, Philadelphia state law says that you have a limited amount of time to initiate a legal action for damages. This is known as a statute of limitations. For most personal injury cases, the statute of limitations is two years. The clock begins to run when you discover your soft tissue injury, which may or may not be the date of your accident.
The statute of limitations can be different in certain cases. For example, if you believe that the government is somehow responsible – maybe you tripped, fell, and sprained your knee because of uneven city sidewalks – you’ll have less time to act. Alternatively, you could have additional time to assert your rights if you were a minor when you got hurt or if the person responsible for your soft tissue injury can’t be located.
Keep in mind that you will not be able to recover anything if you let the applicable statute of limitations expire before you file a claim.
Set Up a Free Case Assessment With Our Philadelphia Personal Injury Lawyers
Are you struggling with a soft tissue injury? Whether you got hurt in a motor vehicle accident or slipped on a floor in a busy restaurant, Zavodnick & Lasky Personal Injury Lawyers can help you fight for the compensation you may deserve. Our Philadelphia personal injury attorneys offer a free consultation, so give us a call (215) 875-7030 today or contact us to schedule yours and learn more.
