While a sudden back injury is common in the workplace, not all injuries result from a single event. Some workers develop back injuries from repetitive lifting of heavy objects, leading to degenerative disc disease.
This is a condition where the soft, sponge-like discs between a person’s vertebrae push on nerves and become inflamed. It can leave you with chronic pain and limit your mobility.
Living with degenerative disc disease is challenging, so you deserve to secure the needed resources to seek proper medical treatment. You can begin that by pursuing a workers’ compensation claim.
However, the likely issue you’ll face is proving that your back injury was developed through repetitive injury-causing tasks and not a singular event. This tricky situation makes recovering compensation difficult for workers in construction, emergency medical services, trucking, warehousing, and more.
To strengthen your claim and prove your right to compensation, you need to seek the assistance of a good workers’ compensation attorney. Other than that, here’s what you can do to make your case solid:
- Note down the time when you first noticed your back pain. Then, you can write about which work-related activity may have caused it and which activities worsened it.
- Talk to a medical professional to get an accurate diagnosis of your injury. Ask them to assess how your present injuries could be related to your work duties. Be sure to document your doctor’s conclusions.
- Obtain all needed documentation of your condition, including the prognosis and treatment costs.
- Avoid doing non-work-related activities that may worsen your condition.
Remember to always be thorough with gathered evidence that directly links your injury and its worsening to your work duties.
Conclusion
Proving a degenerative disc disease that developed over time due to your work duties might be challenged to prevent you from receiving your workers’ compensation claim. To build a solid claim, you need to make the best argument possible, research this aspect of the law, and speak with those knowledgeable about workers’ compensation to assist you.
Pacific Workers’, The Lawyers for Injured Workers assists injured workers in Northern California to ensure they get the claim they deserve. We are committed to maximizing your financial compensation. Everything we do hinges on providing the best customer service experience possible. If you need a workers’ compensation attorney, call us at 800-606-6999 for a free consultation.