Eye Injuries and Vision Problems Resulting From Maryland Car Crashes

As automobile and commercial trucking accident lawyers, we know how a bad traffic accident can affect victims in the worst ways. While fatal roadway collisions are very tragic and can change the course of a family’s future forever, a car crash or motorcycle wreck can injure a victim to the extent that he or she may need constant, lifetime care; this can weigh heavy on the victim’s family to the point of causing serious financial and emotional difficulties.

At Lebowitz & Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers, our lawyers understand the human toll that traffic accidents can exact. Considering that the majority of roadway collisions could have been prevented, they are usually the result of a careless or negligent act of one single person. Whether a serious injury-related traffic collision takes place on the beltway outside Washington, D.C., on the city streets of Baltimore or on a two-lane road near Gaithersburg, the long-term impact to victims and their families is always a concern.

Over the course of work as car and truck injury claims attorneys, we have meet individuals who have sustained serious injuries that sometimes result in long-term and often permanent disability. As experienced trial lawyers skilled in personal injury, auto accident and insurance law, we fully understand the pain and discomfort that victims of automobile accidents must endure. And, with more than 30,000 injury-related car accidents taking place across Maryland every year, the odds that someone reading this may be hurt or injured in the future is not necessarily remote.

Car, truck and motorcycle accidents kill tens of thousands of people nationwide each year, but automobile-related injuries place many more people on the lists of permanently disabled. While it is possible to argue which permanent injuries are the hardest to deal with, the loss of one’s eyesight likely ranks high on the list of undesirable outcomes from a roadway collision.

Certainly it can be said that there is nothing quite as important to most people as their eyesight. As human beings, we have evolved over time to rely in large part on our visual senses, as opposed to those of hearing, touch or smell. Because of this, any event that compromises or robs an individual of his sight can spell a major life change to that individual and his family.

As experienced personal injury trial attorneys, Lebowitz & Mzhen know that finding a qualified legal expert can be critical for those victims of a serious and irreversible accident-related injury. Losing one or both eyes, or sustaining a brain injury that affects one’s ability to see properly is a tragic event; if that loss of function has been the direct result of a car crash caused by a negligent driver, there is no reason not to consider filing a personal injury claim against the responsible parties.

Having worked in the field of personal injury law, we know that there are numerous ways in which a person can lose their vision. Physical damage to the eye itself is one obvious way in which sight can be lost permanently; however, some kinds of traumatic brain injury may also result in vision-related problems. While a broken leg or arm can be mended over a relatively brief amount of time, losing one’s vision due to closed-head trauma can mean an uncertain outcome for the victim.

Cuts, bruises, broken bones and other similar injuries are more or less easily diagnosed and treated, but some injuries are not so obvious and can be overlooked following a car or trucking-related crash. When an injury goes undetected, and as a result neglected, the eventual rehabilitation for that injury once determined could take longer and in some cases not be as effective in the long run.

Vision problems, mainly those that are neurologically linked, can often be overlooked during initial treatment of a closed-head injury. Because the vision process involves the flow of information to the brain, there is a close relationship between eyesight and brain health. Some symptoms affecting vision and associated with injuries to the brain include the following:

• Blurred vision
• Double vision
• Sore or aching eyes
• Light or glare sensitivity
• Loss of or reduction in one’s field of vision
• Reading difficulties
• Problems with comprehension
• Reduced attention/concentration
• Difficulty or lack of ability to maintain visual contact
• Headaches associated with visual tasks
• Memory problems

Having medically correct or proper eyesight is not the same as having effective visual skills. While a person’s eyes may be physically unaffected as a result of a car crash or other traumatic event, if the visual centers of the brain have been affected by the same incident, that person may experience serious difficulties performing basic tasks due to a neurologic problem caused by traumatic closed-head injury.

Even a mild head injury -- such as a whiplash event caused by a minor rear-end collision -- can result in vision problems. Symptoms vary, but often there may be trouble focusing one’s eyes when trying to view both near and far objects. Double vision and feeling nauseous to the point of vomiting can also be caused when the gaze is shifted around a room, for instance.

As Baltimore auto accident attorneys, the legal team at Lebowitz & Mzhen knows how a serious vision-related condition can be the result of a traumatic brain injury sustained in a severe passenger car crash or motorcycle wreck. When the victim of a traffic-related accident suffers from a diminution or loss of visual skills, there is a chance that the cause may be related to trauma to the brain itself. Some of the visual skills that can be affected by a brain injury may include one of more of the following:

• Tracking, such as eye’s ability to move smoothly across a printed page
• Fixation or being able to quickly locate a specific object
• Peripheral vision and the ability to perceive objects in the surrounding field of vision
• Focusing change or the ability to see a distant object clearly then switch to a closer one without blurring
• Depth perception, which involves being able to judge the relative distances of people or objects
• Maintaining attention or staying focused on a particular activity despite other interference
• Vision perception, which refers to understanding and interpreting what is being seen
• Visualization, such as picturing images in one’s mind, then storing and recalling that image in the future
• Near-vision acuity, which entails clearly seeing, inspecting and identifying an object at arm's length
• Distance acuity, similar to near-vision acuity but for objects viewed at a distance

Many of the problems and issues associated with a traumatic brain injury may be able to be addressed with treatment and rehabilitation by a trained vision care professional. But some problems may not be so easily remedied. In fact, damage to important eye structures, such as the retina and optic nerve, may have permanent effects on an auto accident victim’s eyesight.

Among the more serious physical-related vision problems, retinal detachment is common after a blow to the head, such as during a high-speed highway accident. Damage to the retina, the delicate tissue that lines the backside of your eye, can result in the need for surgical intervention. Because such an event could cause permanent blindness, doctors will attempt to reattach the retina as soon as possible. Damage to the optic nerve is also a serious condition requiring immediate medical care. In such cases, vision loss can occur to the point of causing complete blindness.

Anyone who has lost vision in one or both of their eyes following a car accident should get immediate medical treatment. Once the treatment has been received, it may then be important to contact a qualified personal injury lawyer, especially if you believe that the accident was caused by a negligent motorist. It is no secret that auto accident insurance companies will be investigating the reasons for any injuries to determine if a pre-existing condition was the likely cause, rather than the car crash itself.

Having an experienced trial attorney on one’s side, especially a lawyer skilled in litigating auto injury accident cases, will be an important consideration for most accident victims. The legal staff at the law offices of Lebowitz & Mzhen is ready to help victims recover medical and rehabilitation-related costs resulting from the negligence of another driver. We have years of experience in handling auto and commercial trucking injury cases here in Maryland. As car accident and personal injury attorneys, we are ready to review your injury-related accident case. Simply give us a call toll-free at (800) 654-1949. Or you may contact either Jack Lebowitz or Vadim Mzhen by email to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation.