Arthritis, whether caused or aggravated by a car accident, is an injury for which you can be compensated. We’ll explain what it is, how it’s diagnosed, and how to make it part of your accident claim.
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common accident-related injury. When it's caused or aggravated by a car accident that's someone else's fault, you're entitled to compensation (in legal terms, "damages"). But OA doesn't appear for some time after a wreck, and proving it was caused by the accident can be a challenge. We'll tell you what you need to know.
We start by explaining the OA basics—what it is and how often it develops after an injury. From there, we'll talk about the symptoms to watch for and how OA is diagnosed. Finally, we cover the proof you'll need to collect damages for your OA, and the witnesses who'll probably have to offer that proof.
What Is Osteoarthritis?
Osteoarthritis is the medical term for inflammation in and around joints that typically results from damage to the joint cartilage. Cartilage is smooth tissue that's meant to cushion your joints, preventing the bones from rubbing against each other. Damage sometimes is caused by an injury, though a variety of other conditions can cause it, too.
OA can happen in any joint, but it's commonly found in the hands, shoulders, knees, hips, and spine. Unfortunately, there's no cure for OA. Treatments sometimes help to relieve the symptoms, but it's a progressive condition that often slowly gets worse over time.
Osteoarthritis Caused or Aggravated by a Car Accident
When car accidents are involved, we're concerned with two types of OA.
Post-traumatic OA. This form of OA develops after some injury (post-trauma) involving a joint. Suppose, for instance, that you injure your knee cartilage in a car accident. It's possible that OA will develop later and that you'll begin to experience symptoms. Car accidents are known to be a cause of post-traumatic OA.
Aggravation of preexisting OA. As with post-traumatic OA, auto accidents can trigger aggravation of preexisting OA. Say you injured your knee playing tennis years ago. Over time, OA developed in the joint. Some time later, you reinjured the knee in a car accident. After the accident, your OA symptoms became much more frequent and severe. You can argue that the car accident aggravated your preexisting OA.
How Common Is Osteoarthritis?
Estimates vary, but the Centers for Disease Control report that more than 32 million people have OA. Before age 45, osteoarthritis is more common in men than in women. From age 45 on, women experience OA more often than men. Because it tends to be an age-related condition, most people who are older than 60 have OA, at least to some degree.
Studies indicate that post-traumatic OA accounts for roughly 12% of all OA cases. Between 20% and 50% of patients with a joint injury will develop post-traumatic OA.
Symptoms of Osteoarthritis
Post-traumatic OA doesn't show up right away after a car accident. Unless an injury tears it from the joint surface, the protective cartilage will take time to wear down. How long it takes will depend on a number of factors, such as the severity of the injury, whether there's preexisting arthritis in the joint, the person's age and level of activity, and more.
For some, symptoms begin less than a year after being injured. In others, symptom onset might be delayed for a decade or longer. There's no way to predict, with certainty, how long it might take. When an injury aggravates preexisting OA, symptoms can appear more quickly.
In post-traumatic OA, early symptoms are likely to include mild to moderate pain and stiffness in the injured joint, particularly after a time of inactivity—like first thing in the morning. Symptoms usually increase in frequency, intensity, and duration over time. A lucky few experience mild or intermittent symptoms, or perhaps no symptoms at all.
Typical symptoms of post-traumatic OA include:
- pain in the injured joint—sometimes while resting, other times only with movement
- tenderness in and around the joint—varying in frequency and severity, sometimes felt when at rest, and sometimes only when pressure is applied to the joint
- joint stiffness and instability
- decreased range of motion and flexibility, and
- bone-on-bone grating, or a grinding sensation in the injured joint.
How Is Osteoarthritis Diagnosed?
Osteoarthritis is usually diagnosed through a combination of:
- history and physical examination
- film studies like X-rays, and
- tests to rule out other causes of inflammation and discomfort.
History and Physical Examination
Your doctor will take a history to learn how the underlying injury happened, to find out about any other injuries or conditions that might explain your symptoms, and to rule out other possible causes of pain and inflammation. A physical exam can reveal symptoms such as pain, swelling, redness, limited range of motion, and more.
Film Studies
X-rays and CAT scans are the most common studies used to diagnose OA. They can show narrowing of the joint space, tears and other wear to your cartilage, bone spurs, and other signs of injuries that are consistent with OA.
Tests to Rule Out Other Causes of Inflammation
Your history, symptoms, film studies, or other factors might prompt the doctor to do other tests. The intent is to rule out causes of pain and inflammation other than a traumatic injury. Gout, infection, autoimmune disorders, and genetic predisposition are sometimes culprits.
Making a Claim for Osteoarthritis After a Car Accident
Making a claim for OA—whether post-traumatic or preexisting and aggravated by the collision—is much like making a claim for any other car accident injuries. You'll need to prove that:
- the other driver was negligent
- you were injured, and
- the other driver's negligence caused your injuries.
Causation Is Likely to Be the Sticking Point
Osteoarthritis cases don't usually raise special problems in proving negligence or injury. But you can expect a fight over the last factor, which lawyers refer to as "causation." To be clear, the issue usually isn't whether you suffered an injury because of the accident. The issue is whether the injury you suffered caused (or will in the future cause) traumatic arthritis or aggravation of your preexisting OA.
The other side will be looking for any evidence they can find to point to something else—anything else—as the cause of your arthritis or worsened symptoms. Do you lift weights, run, play tennis, go hiking, or engage in other strenuous activities? Did you play sports when you were younger? Do you have a history of inflammatory disease or autoimmune disorders in your family? Have you been in previous car accidents? Does your job involve repetitive motions?
The other side's goal isn't to figure out what caused your OA. It's to come up with as many reasons as possible why the cause might not be the car accident you think is to blame. Remember: The burden is on you to prove it's more likely true than not true that the accident caused your OA or aggravated your preexisting OA. The other side doesn't have to prove anything.
How do you counter this attack?
You'll Need Medical Evidence to Prove Causation
Your lawyer (yes, you should hire a lawyer) will have to work closely with your treating doctor and, if applicable, your expert medical witnesses. The doctor will need to testify regarding all the medical proof that backs up your claims—your medical history, mechanism of injury, what your physical exams showed, your X-rays and CAT scans, and anything else that supports causation.
Your medical witnesses must be rock solid. If they waver, they'll create openings for the other side to poke holes in your evidence.
Damages for Osteoarthritis in a Car Accident Case
To illustrate the damages you can collect, let's assume that you break your left shin bone in a car accident that was the other driver's fault. Your orthopedic surgeon tells you that because of where and how the bone was broken, you'll probably develop post-traumatic OA in your knee.
Typical car accident damages. In a car accident case like this one, you're entitled to collect damages for both past and future:
- doctor, hospital, rehabilitation, and other medical bills
- lost wages and benefits for time you miss from work
- amounts you pay for replacement household and child care services
- other out-of-pocket expenses related to your injuries and treatment
- pain and suffering
- emotional distress
- disability and disfigurement, and
- loss of enjoyment of life.
Future damages are the key in OA cases. Because OA takes time to develop after an injury, most of the damages related to OA are likely to come in the future, after you've settled your case or tried it to a jury. How do you collect damages for those future injuries?
You must be able to prove:
- that in the future, you'll experience symptoms or problems—for example, pain, swelling, decreased range of motion, instability, loss of use, and disability—because of your OA
- because of those symptoms and problems, you'll need future medical care and treatment like X-rays, doctors' visits, physical therapy, braces and other medical equipment, medicines, treatments, and surgeries, and
- how much those future treatments will cost.
Doctors and other expert witnesses. You can speak to the pain, emotional distress, and disability you've already experienced and how those things will impact your life in the future. But it will be up to your doctor and other experts to do most of the heavy lifting, evidence-wise. You'll need medical testimony to explain your likely future medical problems and symptoms, along with the specific care and treatment you'll need.
If your anticipated future care needs are extensive, expert witnesses like a care planner and an economist will have to explain your future medical expenses and reduce them to present-day dollars. Those experts don't come cheap. Whether it makes financial sense to hire them will be a judgment call you and your lawyer will have to make, based on the expected total value of your case.
Get Help With Your Case
As should be clear by now, when OA is a significant component of your car accident injuries and damages, your case is likely to be both factually and legally complex. Unless you understand causation and how to defend attacks against it, odds are you're in over your head. You need experienced legal help on your side.
A car accident lawyer is familiar with the issues you'll face when OA is part of your case, and will give you the best chance for a fair outcome. If you're ready to move forward, here's how to find an attorney in your area who's right for you.
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