Can a Car Accident Cause Fibromyalgia?

During the aftermath of a traumatic car accident, your worst injuries are often immediately apparent to emergency services and the medical providers at the hospital, but what if the accident triggers vague symptoms later diagnosed as fibromyalgia? Did the car accident cause the disease, and can you make a claim for damages associated with the condition if someone else’s actions caused the car accident?

Insurance companies hire adjusters to find reasons to deny or undervalue claims in order to protect their profits. Unless your Seattle car accident attorney carefully constructs your claim for damages, the insurance company is likely to deny a claim for damages from fibromyalgia on the grounds that it’s a pre-existing condition.

How can a diligent Seattle personal injury attorney help a victim of accident-triggered fibromyalgia successfully claim compensation?

What is Fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia is a widely misunderstood medical condition affecting the musculoskeletal system. It causes an amplification of the normal pain signals felt in the body so the affected individual experiences symptoms ranging from tenderness in parts of the body to chronic widespread pain.

Many sufferers also complain of fatigue, difficulty concentrating, and mood disturbances. Fibromyalgia is more common in women. Symptoms may come and go or could be continual depending on the severity of the individual’s condition. Researchers are uncertain of fibromyalgia’s exact cause and progression, but evidence suggests it’s sometimes related to bodily trauma, including after a car accident.

Studies Reveal a Link Between Physical Trauma and Fibromyalgia

Studies have shown that car accident victims have a greater instance of developing fibromyalgia. Researchers have found that the physical and emotional trauma of a serious car accident sometimes causes changes in the body’s pain receptors due to over-stimulation of the nerves and a resulting increase in the body’s sensitivity to pain. Fibromyalgia pain can become debilitating, but can a victim recover compensation for damages related to fibromyalgia after a car accident?

Making a Claim for Damages After a Car Accident Triggers Fibromyalgia

Civil courts exist to offer victims a way to recover damages, including those suffered after a preventable car accident caused by a negligent or reckless driver. If someone else caused your car accident and you’ve since developed fibromyalgia, it may not be too late to file a claim for damages within your state’s statute of limitations for personal injury claims.

A skilled attorney can prove the causal link between your car accident and the development of fibromyalgia by careful examination of your medical records and the testimony of medical experts to make a claim for damages. Compensation for the following damages is possible in a car-accident fibromyalgia claim:

• Medical expenses and future medical expenses related to fibromyalgia treatment
• Lost wages
• Pain and suffering
• Diminished quality of life

Because fibromyalgia causes chronic pain, you may be able to receive substantial compensation for your pain and suffering with a well-executed demand package to the insurance company of the at-fault party in your car accident.

Insurance companies require strong evidence that your fibromyalgia not only exists but was triggered by the severe trauma of a car accident caused by their policyholder. If they attempt to deny the claim, your attorney may file a lawsuit within the state’s statute of limitations and pursue compensation through a jury verdict.

No one should be left holding the bag for damages related to a car accident caused by someone else, especially when the result of the accident is a chronic painful condition like fibromyalgia. A successful claim for damages not only brings financial relief but also a sense of justice.