You’re driving to the grocery store to pick up a few things for dinner and approach a traffic signal at a four-way intersection. You begin to slow your vehicle for the red light and as your vehicle comes to a complete stop, in your rearview mirror, you notice that there is another car right behind you and it isn’t slowing down. As you brace for impact, the other vehicle crashes into the rear of your vehicle and the back window shatters. You feel disoriented and there is a distinct ringing in your ears. After the accident, you go to the hospital and the medical staff treats your visible physical injuries. You don’t bother to mention that you have ringing in your ears because you think it will resolve on its own. As days and weeks go by, the ringing never subsides and you are constantly distracted by it. You wonder to yourself, “is this ringing in my ears related to the car accident?”
That Ringing may be Tinnitus and it could have been caused by your accident.
It is very possible that the ringing in your ears was caused by the motor vehicle collision that you were involved in and is a compensable injury. The ringing in your ears could be a condition called tinnitus. Tinnitus is the perception of sound when no actual external noise is present. For many, it is a ringing sound, but for others, it can be whistling, buzzing, chirping, hissing, humming, roaring, or even shrieking. Tinnitus can be an acute (temporary) or a chronic (ongoing) health condition.
In general, there are two types of tinnitus; subjective tinnitus and objective tinnitus. Subjective tinnitus is the head or ear noises that are perceivable only to the patient. Subjective tinnitus is usually traceable to auditory and neurological reactions to hearing loss but can also be caused by an array of other catalysts. Objective tinnitus is head or ear noise that is audible to other people, as well as the patient. These sounds are typically produced by internal functions in the body’s circulatory and somatic systems. Subjective tinnitus represented more than 99% of all reported tinnitus cases.[1]
Additionally, airbag deployment caused by a motor vehicle accident can cause otologic injuries like hearing loss and tinnitus. While airbags are very successful at mitigating injury severity during a motor vehicle accident, the deployment of the airbag can cause tinnitus. In a study of twenty patients who sustained ontological injuries resulting from airbag inflation, seventeen patients complained of hearing loss and seventeen complained of tinnitus.[2]
There is currently no scientifically-validated cure for most types of tinnitus but there are ways to manage tinnitus. Please speak with a healthcare professional to review your options on how to manage your tinnitus symptoms. If you believe that you suffer from tinnitus, it is critical that you be examined by a medical doctor. If your tinnitus occurred after a car accident, you should consult with a car accident attorney as soon as possible to preserve a successful personal injury claim.
Getting compensation for tinnitus
In order for an individual with tinnitus to have a successful personal injury claim, the individual needs the right set of facts and corroborating medical testimony to be fully compensated for his/her injuries. The personal injury attorneys at Guendelsberger Law Offices have successfully represented individuals that suffer from tinnitus caused and exacerbated by a motor vehicle accident.
The personal injury attorneys at Guendelsberger Law Offices have the necessary knowledge and experience to successfully litigate personal injury claims involving tinnitus and have done so numerous times. If you have been in an accident, please use the form to the right (below if on a mobile device) to schedule a no-cost, no-obligation consultation.
[1] Understanding the Facts, American Tinnitus Association, https://www.ata.org/understanding-facts
[2] Airbag Deployment Study – Otologic Injuries Secondary to Airbag Deployment, William J. McFeely, Jr., M.D., Dennis I. Bojrab, M.D., Kent G. Davis, M.D., and Douglas F. Hegyi, D.O., Presented at the American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery Foundation Annual Meeting, San Antonio, TX, September 13-16, 1998.