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Crush Injuries at Work

Crush injuries occur when an object crushes all or part of a person’s body.  These types of injuries can cause serious problems.  Crush injuries to the whole body can be fatal.  Crush injuries to part of the body can cause permanent pain and disability.

This article discusses different types of crush injuries.  This article also discusses some important things to consider when you have a Georgia workers’ compensation claim from a crush injury.

It is important to understand that I am an attorney.  I am not a doctor.  Nothing in this article is intended as medical advice.  Make sure that you get a good workers’ compensation doctor to get the best treatment for your crush injury.

It is very important to get a medical evaluation after a crush injuryHow do crush injuries occur at work?

Crush injuries at work can occur a number of different ways.  Some common causes include:

  • Car wrecks where part of the car crushes part of the driver or passenger’s body
  • Crush injuries from machines where part of the machine crushes a worker’s arm or leg
  • Injuries where a person’s feet or legs are crushed by a forklift or other heavy vehicle operating in the workplace

Workers suffering from crush injuries need to make sure that they get medical evaluations quickly.  Doctors may need to perform diagnostic testing such as x-rays or CT scans to evaluate for fractures or other types of internal damage.  Doctors may also need to evaluate you for other conditions that could develop from crush injuries.

Other medical conditions that may develop from crush injuries

Several different medical conditions can develop from crush injuries.  Some serious conditions that I have seen develop after injuries at work include

  • Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) – this condition is sometimes known as Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD).  It can be an extremely painful condition which can “spread” to different parts of the body.  Early diagnosis and treatment of this condition seems to improve an injured worker’s outcome.
  • Compartment Syndrome – swelling after a crush injury can cause damage to muscles and nerves
  • Fractures
  • Amputations – A crush injury to the fingers or toes can often require amputations of part or all of a digit.  Quick medical treatment might decrease the chance that an amputation is necessary.

Getting good medical treatment will probably improve the chance of you having a better recovery from your injury.

What if I have a permanent impairment from a crush injury?

Many crush injuries cause permanent impairment.   Permanent partial disability (PPD) benefits  are one of the three basic types of Georgia workers’ compensation benefits.

You should make sure that you receive PPD benefits if you have a permanent impairment.  The insurance company should ask the doctor to give you a PPD rating.  In fact, the law requires it.  But it often does not happen.  So, make sure to ask your doctor to evaluate you for a PPD rating when you reach maximum medical improvement (MMI).

 What if my crush injury prevents me from going back to work?

Even minor crush injuries can keep you out of work for some time.  Severe injuries sometimes cause a permanent and total inability to work.

Georgia’s workers’ compensation law provides that your employer or their workers’ compensation insurance company should pay you temporary total disability (TTD)Many crush injuries cause permanent impairment benefits while you are out of work as a result of your injury.  But there are limits on how long you can receive these benefits.

These limits on benefits make it difficult for people with severe injuries.  Permanent restrictions from an injury can make it difficult to get back to work.  However, the
limits on how long you can received TTD benefits can cause your benefits to stop even if you are not able to go back to work yet.

If your injury is severe enough, you may qualify for a catastrophic designation.  This designation removes one of the time limits on temporary total disability benefits.

Crush injuries can qualify for a catastrophic designation based on several different subparts of the catastrophic law.  Two of the most common types that apply to crush injuries are the (g)(6) “catch all” provision and the amputation provision.

If you have a serious crush injury, you need to know whether you may qualify for a catastrophic designation.  Our article on catastrophic designation provides some more specific information about  what a catastrophic designation is and how you can qualify for it.

What if I have other questions about workers compensation?

Georgia’s workers compensation system can be very confusing.  You have to worry about getting the treatment you need and paying your bills while also worrying about not missing any deadlines that could cause you to lose your right to receive workers compensation benefits.

If you have questions, I would recommend that you try to get answers.  To find out more about how to schedule a time to talk to me about your workers compensation questions, just read this short article.

Jason Perkins is an attorney who specializes in representing injured workers.  He regularly publishes videos and write blog articles about Georgia’s workers compensation system and issues that are important to injured workers and their families.

To be notified of Jason’s new workers compensation videos, subscribe to his Georgia Workers Compensation Video Series channel on YouTube by clicking the subscribe button below.

Brittney-lee orourkeBrittney-lee orourke
05:23 18 Feb 22
Amazing! Jason and his team were very helpful and had the best communication by far. Walked me though every step with great detail and had answers for any question I had. They handled my case better then I could imagine, it was a weird case and they stayed on top of it and kept me updated every step of the way! Highly recommend this Team! Thanks so much to Jason and his Awesome team!-Brittney
China JonesChina Jones
18:58 08 Feb 22
I absolutely love this group of attorneys, when I was at my lowest they did everything they could to help me get justice for my injury. I believe if I were to have never picked my phone up and called the amazing group that helped me I definitely would not have received my idea of rights. If you have an issue and are just not sure please understand that they will help you, stay in contact, answer any question you have, and for sure get you the justice you deserve I thank them from the bottom of my heart and I will definitely refer them to anyone who has been hurt because they most definitely care about their work and clients.
Luv LocsLuv Locs
16:08 15 Jan 22
The entire law office was attentive and responsive to all of my concerns dealing with my workers compensation case.
moombimoombi
21:14 02 Jan 22
If you must get a lawyer involved, you’d do well to work with Jason Perkins and his team at Perkins Studdard Law.They were thorough in gathering information and in sharing all the steps in the workers comp process specific to my case. Jason and the team were responsive to my bevy of questions and concerns.I appreciated the informative videos and consultations provided by Jason over video meetings and multiple phone calls.I hope I’m never injured on the job again. However, if I am and if my employer responds as my previous employer did, I’ll contact Perkins Studdard Law immediately to handle the case.
Dana BessDana Bess
23:57 10 Dec 21
Everyone at Perkins Studdard was kind and professional. They were always extremely responsive and answered all questions that I had and followed up to make sure I had an understanding of what was going on along with emailing videos to explain every step of my case so I would know what to expect and be prepared. Jason is a very genuine person and I trusted him with my case. He answered so many questions for me even before I retained him as my WC lawyer. I highly recommend him and his associates at Perkins Studdard.
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