Medical Imaging for Personal Injury Claims Involving Car Accidents

Medical Imaging for Personal Injury Claims Involving Car Accidents

 

Personal injury claims require a serious burden of proof, and medical imaging can be the case-deciding factor. Even when doctors decline to order MRI scans, lawyers themselves can sometimes schedule a diagnostic imaging procedure for their clients.

 

Here’s what attorneys should know about pursuing medical imaging procedures for their patients who have been injured in at-fault car accidents:

 

 

Some MRI scans do not require a physician’s referral.

 

 

You can divide MRI scans into two general categories: those that require an intravenous contrast agent, typically a harmless element called gadolinium, and those that don’t. The former do require a doctor’s order, but a simple MRI scan, without the use of contrast agent, may not require an initial doctor’s referral

 

 

Most other medical imaging procedures do require a doctor’s recommendation.

 

 

Many of the leading technologies radiologists use to diagnose injuries and illnesses expose patients to a small dose of ionizing radiation. It’s small, but over a patient’s lifespan, the exposure accumulates. That’s why radiologists generally do require a physician’s referral before proceeding with tests such as X-rays, CT scans, and arthrograms.

 

 

Doctors often order MRI scans in cases of suspected cases of spinal injury and soft tissues.

 

 

MRI scans are particularly well-suited to imaging soft tissues, such as ligaments, muscles, and nerves. Injuries associated with car accidents — including whiplash and herniated discs — often involve these soft tissues. So this imaging modality is particularly well suited to common injuries that result from car accidents.

 

 

Rear-end collisions frequently lead to whiplash and spinal cord injuries.

 

 

When one driver rear-ends another, causing injury, half of the attorney’s job is already done: It’s usually simpler to assign fault in rear-end collision cases.

 

However, they still have to convince the judge that the patient was truly injured. Because this type of wreck often leads to soft-tissue injuries, MRI scans might be the ideal imaging modality to show to prove the negative effect of the accident on the plaintiff’s health.

 

 

Precise Imaging can provide MRI scans on a tight deadline.

 

 

Some personal injury attorneys spend hours calling around to diagnostic imaging providers, looking for a quick MRI before a case goes to court. The better solution would be to rely on a consistent resource with an imaging provider that understands the role of diagnostic imaging in legal cases — a provider like Precise Imaging.

 

Precise Imaging has experience serving attorneys and their clients in the Los Angeles area and beyond. We offer specialized resources just for attorneys, and accept personal injury liens as well as letters of protection. There’s even a dedicated web portal just for attorneys, complete with 24/7 IT support.

 

We also understand that, in law, timing is of the essence. That’s why Precise Imaging’s locations offer expedited, 24-hour service on radiology reports with tight deadlines.    

 

The next time you file a personal injury claim for a client who was injured in a car accident, remember the value of diagnostic MRI scans. Call Precise Imaging at 800-558-2223 to learn more.