Leg Injuries and Motorcycle Accidents

Around half of all non-fatal motorcycle accident injuries are to the leg or foot.

One of the most common places for a motorcycle to be struck by another vehicle is at an intersection. And one of the most common causes of this is a passenger car driver failing to note the presence of a motorcycle before either crossing or turning into that intersection. This will most likely result in the bike being struck on the side, with the bumper of the car just the right height to make direct impact with the femur. Injuries to the femur are painful, severe, and require months of rehabilitation to recover from. If you suffered such an injury in a St. Louis motorcycle accident, speaking with an attorney is one of the first steps toward getting due compensation.

Most Common Motorcycle Accident Injuries

Half of all nonfatal injuries sustained in a motorcycle crash are to the leg or foot. This is easy to understand when you picture a motorist on his bike. Unlike the driver of a car, the motorcyclists legs are completely exposed and vulnerable to injury. There are some studies that suggest about a third of these types of injuries could be avoided with the use of crash bars.

One of the largest and strongest bones in the human body, the femur connects to the hip at the top end and the knee at the bottom end. A lot of force is required to break this bone, which is why breaks are rarely seen except in patients who have experienced a high force impact to their femur.

Broken Femur – Femur Fractures

A Missouri jury awarded a motorcyclist $319,000 after he suffered from a broken femur as a result of an accident. The medical expenses incurred were $70,000 and the balance of the award is meant to cover the intensive amount of therapy that will be required in order for the bone to completely heal. Most often, a fracture to the femur requires major surgery and relies on hardware to keep it in place as it heals. Death is a possibility as the break can lead to dangerous blood clots or infections. Once the patient is cleared to go home, they can expect to be bed-ridden for months as the bone slowly fuses back together. Loss of use for those months will typically cause muscle weakness. Extensive physical therapy after a femur fracture is to be expected.

St. Louis Motorcycle Accident Attorneys

If you have sustained injury to the leg in a motorcycle accident, there is a good chance that you are entitled to compensation. Most intersection accidents involving a motorcycle are caused by the passenger car driver not paying attention and failing to notice the bike. Since this type of injury is almost always caused by a high force direct impact, it can be assumed that you or your bike were hit on the side.

Contact an attorney at the Zevan and Davidson Law Firm to determine if liability can be proven and compensation sought. Call us today at (314) 588-7200 to schedule a free consultation.