This study included 3047 patients ages 18-84. They all had experienced acute trauma from an accident. The researchers followed the people for over one year and discovered most of the pain was reported in the joints and extremities (44%), back (26%) head (11%) and neck (7%). Moreover, 59% of those patients with injury-related pain had three or more painful areas one year after injury.

Pain can rob you of your family time, work productivity and quality of life. Since pain is a component of your claim for damages in a personal injury lawsuit, it is important to choose the best qualified attorney in your area. In Orange County, California, you have the advantage of one of the top-rated personal injury firms in the state, Allen, Flatt, Ballidis and Leslie.

Other findings worth noting in this March 2008 study were that more interventions are needed to decrease chronic pain when treating trauma patients. Pain levels at the 3 month marker were indicators on how long pain severity would continue. Basically, if you had severe pain after three months of a single trauma, most probably you would be experiencing at least moderate pain in one year’s time.

In addition, other recent studies have shown patients with specific injuries like pelvic fractures and lower extremity injuries will most likely experience chronic pain five to seven years after the injury. Of course, this can eventually lead to various forms of disability, post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.

The information for early pain management options should be available to patients so that they can choose the best treatment according to their injury and lifestyle. But where can a person go to get unbiased information? First, always keep a good line of communication open with your doctor and then start with the following resources:

A general overview of evaluating Health Information on the Internet can be found at, http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/evalhealthinfo.html.
A comprehensive non-profit organization called the American Pain Foundation has several resource guides for managing and understanding your pain. Here are a few helpful links:
Pain Resource Guide,
Discussion Guide for you and your doctor,
Pain Treatment Options,
Options for Managing pain,
Pain relief: OTC options.

Take care, drive defensively and stay safe.

Congratulations to Mr. Mazal and the entire litigation team of the firm.

Seems hard to believe, but true. What’s more unbelievable is that the legal theory behind this ruling is that the Food and Drug Administration, FDA, the agency that approves the safety of drugs, medical devices and other consumables is doing a good job. With thousands of current recalls on medical devices, not to mention questionable pharmaceuticals and the record number of food contamination outbreaks, do we really trust the FDA is doing the best job possible to protect us?

The FDA’s own advisory committee found that “the agency is so underfunded and understaffed that it’s putting U.S. consumers at risk in terms of food and drug safety”. The FDA has 1,311 fewer employees than it had 14 years and a deteriorating budget with obsolete technology. Moreover, currently 80% of all drugs sold in the United States are currently made overseas and the number of inspectors has gone from 531 in 2003 to just 380 in 2006. How does this lack of inspections make our food and drug supply safer?

Last year the U.S. experienced record numbers of food and drug recalls. Many of our products are now coming from China and they have a dismal record of contaminated food and drugs. Your prior rights in personal injury cases due to defective products and product liability have been severely compromised. The FDA admits that they only are capable of inspecting 2% of the imports coming into this country. This is truly unacceptable and even the advisory committees are helpless to provide change without a major overhaul of federal funding and major budgetary increase from the congress. In an election year and with a financial crisis looming, that probably won’t happen.
Last year, the Journal of the American Medical Association, JAMA, wrote an extensive article on the role of litigation and the release of drug information entitled, “The Role of Litigation in Defining Drug Risks”. The article, written from the doctor’s point of view, argues that often they themselves are unaware of some of the adverse side effects of some drugs. Doctors learn about new drugs from publications of clinical trials or case reports, promotional materials and FDA approval letters. Sometimes the information is limited in nature and only through the discovery process do the accurate, balanced data become known. In addition, sometimes the FDA approves drugs for a specific condition and then the drug is used for other reasons. The system is clearly flawed and needs to be fair for all involved.

Last month, an explosive undercover video showed sick animals shoveled by forklifts, crippled cattle being prodded and other cruel acts. A Westland employee, working undercover for the Humane Society shot the video to expose the inhumane treatment of animals going to the slaughterhouse, but now it has opened up scrutiny to just how did this award-wining slaughterhouse, under the watchful eye of two federals agencies, succumb to probable bankruptcy and the largest recall in history.

After purchasing Hallmark meat Company in 2000, Steven Mendell wasted no time in turning the slaughterhouse into a state-of-the-art facility. The goal was to acquire one the federal government most lucrative accounts-The National School Lunch Program. Mendell invested millions in upgrades; stainless steel equipment, new floor and ceilings, and soon it became a top beef processor. In 2004, Mendell was named “Supplier of the year” for the program. Even though the company had minor violations, the firm always said that the workers involved had been retrained and all animals were being treated humanely.

Ironically, if it wasn’t for an undercover, Humane Society inspector, none of these problems would be known today. The main problem within the slaughterhouse is the killing of sick cows or “downer” cows-cows that can’t stand alone. Sick cows pose a risk of spreading mad cow disease, salmonella or E. coli and the USDA, United States Department of Agriculture, has banned their meat from entering the food supply.

Mad Cow Disease or BSE, bovine spongiform encephalopathy is a rare condition that affects people that have eaten beef from diseased cows. Although very rare, if humans eat this poisoned beef they can contract a serious and always fatal disease, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). The huge problem with this disease is that no one knows how long the incubation period is. However, most experts agree that it takes years, if not decades to actual get the disease from the time you initially eat the contaminated food. This makes possible personal injury correlation from contaminated beef consumption almost impossible.

On average, around 250-300 cases of CJD are reported in the United States. Recently a Kansas man died of CJD after working in a meat packing plant for over 20 years.
The Department of Agriculture’s set of rules is to have veterinarian inspect any cow that can’t walk to the slaughterhouse on its own. If they can’t stand, for obvious reasons, they are not supposed to go into the food supply. It is always the veterinarian’s call as to the health of the cow. In the Westland case, the Food and Safety Inspection service determined “the food was unfit for human food due to the cattle not receiving proper inspection”. Know your rights when you have been a victim of defective products.

Unfortunately, most of the meat in questioned has been eaten. Currently 21 of the 28 Orange County School Districts have been affected. Visit www.fns.usda.gov for a complete list of schools affected. Along with schools, numerous restaurants, hospitals, and retail outlets have been involved. The whole incident is such a tragedy for the public in general. We depend on government inspectors to do their job, but as in so many cases, they are overworked, underpaid, and the innocent consumer gets the raw deal.

Last May, Hayley Wesley left her daughter, Madison in the back of her car for three hours. Her child died of hyperthermia. This week the prosecutor’s office in California sentenced her to three years in jail. However, when you are responsible for the death of your child, I’m sure she will feel guilt for the rest of her life for this tragic error in judgment.

Since the early 1990’s, there has been a tenfold increase in young children’s deaths due to hyperthermia. One theory to explain the increases is that since the introduction of front seat airbags, children no longer sit in the front seat of automobiles. In addition, cars have grown larger; people drive more vans and SUV’s which are harder to view in the back. However, by far the most common excuse for this tragedy is that the caregiver or parent just “forgets” their child.

In a study done recently by Injury Prevention Journal, over 47% of children’s caregivers had forgotten that the child or children were in the back of the car. What’s even more disturbing is that 21% of the these children were left intentionally in the car by the parent. Parents and caregivers need to be educated on the dangers of extreme temperatures that rise quickly in a locked automobile.

In the average closed car, the temperature will increase 19 degrees Fahrenheit in only 10 minutes. After 20 minutes, the increase is 29 degrees and so on. After one hour, the temperature has risen to 45-50 degrees over and above what the temperature is outside. Cracking the window does not have a big factor in cooling the interior of the automobile.
Whether there is a change in a routine or feeling overloaded, sometimes parents do and will forget their kids. Fortunately, some technology devices have recently been created to prevent these types of tragedies. One keychain-type device, developed by a NASA engineer is called the “Child Presence Sensor”. It fits on your key chain and when you exit the car without removing your child from their car seat, the device will beep. Another simpler device is the “Baby Safety Line”. It literally is a colored plastic line that attaches a hook to your baby’s seat on one end, to your ignition keys or dashboard on the other. For a full review of technology devices, visit www.kidsandcars.org/incidents/heat/technology.html
California is one of only 12 states that have laws against leaving children unattended in cars.

It is illegal to leave a child under the age of six years in a car alone, except if there is another person 12 years or older. For our families sake, let’s all slow down a little as we enter into the summer season. Keep your kids hydrated with plenty of water, keep your vehicle cool and don’t leave your children unattended for any amount of time.

Gun ownership is perceived to be a fundamental right here in the U.S. In fact, a recent CNN opinion poll revealed that 65% of Americans surveyed believed they had a right to own a gun. But along with ownership comes responsibility, and way too many guns are getting in the hands of children who are too young or untrained. This combination can lead to accidental deaths or personal injury. If it has lead to touch your life accidentally or intentionally, we want to here from you. A personal injury attorney will help you through your troubled times. But to my story of sensless injury read on.

Each year more than 16,000 children are injured with guns and since 1990, more than 5,000 kids have died. Many of these incidences are from kids finding guns in a drawer, in a closet or an unlocked gun cabinet in the home. Moreover, in 72% of unintentional deaths and injury cases the firearm was stored in the residence of the victim, relative or friend. The NRA has created a program to teach kids safety in and around guns. Their motto is: “If You See a Gun: Stop! Don’t Touch. Leave The Area. Tell An Adult.” Don’t trust that your child may learn this safety in their school. Talk to your kids about gun safety and never point a gun at anyone.
Common Sense about kids and guns, www.kidsandguns.org/ a safety organization that educates gun owners and children about safety tips has the following recommendations:
Parents who own a gun:
· Unload your gun and lock it up
· Lock and store ammunition separately
· Hide keys where children can’t find them
All Parents:
· Ask if guns are safely stored at places your children visit or plays
· Talk with your children about guns
· Teach young children not to touch guns, and to tell and adult if they find one
I
n addition, Project ChildSafe is a nationwide program that helps ensure safe and responsible firearm ownership and storage. You can search their website for California law enforcement links for a location near you that will give you a free gun ownership safety kit. Visit www.projectchildsafe.org/

Gun ownership varies from state to state, but in California, we have one of the lowest ownerships rates, only 21.3% of households. Only 5 other states have lower rates. However, Orange County does have the second highest registration of assault weapons here in California, next to Los Angeles County. Be aware that if you own a gun, in most cases you are responsible for its proper use. One rare case in 2003 held the gun maker liable for a Californian boy that was shot by his babysitter. However, the jury did spread liability around; gun maker, distributors, parents, etc.

The California Firearms Law of 2006 does protect homeowners from using guns for self defense purposes and to defend themselves from personal attack that would cause them bodily harm. It is your right to keep a gun, but for our kid’s sake, keep it locked and stored safely to avoid any potential personal injury.

One other really effective method of securing a gun is a trigger lock. It works on a combination that only you know. It prevents even a loaded firearm from accidental discharge. It can be unlocked in seconds allowing the protection function of the gun in the home and finally, cannot be broken off even with sledge hammers applied to it. It is a great way to protect your family, and also protect against stolen guns being used in later crimes.

While operating his motorcycle on a roadway in Huntington Beach, an adverse driver turned left into his path causing him to have to lay down his motorcycle, hurting his knee. Liability was clear and injury at the scene did not seem to be anything more than scrapes and road rash after the accident. There was however a small bruise on the knee, that our office photographed out of caution..