Degloving Injury

Even though you might not have heard the term “degloving injury” before now, you might be dealing with the painful consequences of this type of personal injury. A victim could develop secondary infections and other complications from a degloving injury. In extreme cases, degloving injuries could lead to wrongful death.

If you sustained a degloving injury, contact a New York personal injury attorney for a free consultation. You may be entitled to compensation for your pain and suffering, disfigurement, financial losses, and other damages.

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What Is a Degloving Injury?

You might have sustained a degloving injury but did not know that this was the medical term used to describe it. There are two types of degloving injuries a person might sustain:

Open Degloving Injury

Degloving occurs when the top layers of skin and tissue separate from the body. As a result, the injury can expose the bone, tissue, and muscle underneath the skin. This type of degloving injury is called an “open degloving injury” because it creates an open wound.

An open degloving wound could occur when the skin is completely ripped from the body. However, some people experience this type of injury when the skin is torn but remains partially attached to the body.

Closed Degloving Injury

A closed degloving injury or internal degloving occurs when a gap develops between the layers of skin without opening. Imagine an air pocket forming between layers of soft tissue. The pocket may fill with lymphatic fluid, fat, or blood.

Degloving injuries can occur anywhere on the body.

What Can Cause a Degloving Injury?

Degloving injuries are often associated with work-related accidents, especially involving farm, industrial, or construction equipment. However, other types of accidents could result in a degloving injury.

Common causes of degloving injuries include, but are not limited to:

Motorcycle accidents
Animal and dog bites
Pedestrian accidents
Car accidents
Falls from heights and slips, trips, and falls
Construction accidents
Workplace accidents
Bicycle accidents
Sports and recreational incidents
Playground accidents

It is crucial to seek immediate medical attention after suffering a degloving injury. Without medical treatment, the condition could become life-threatening. A person may develop one or more secondary conditions because of degloving injuries, including shock, blood loss, and infections.

What Are the Treatments for Degloving Injuries?

The treatment depends on the type and severity of the degloving injury.

One of the problems in treating closed degloving injuries is obtaining a correct medical diagnosis. An open degloving injury is apparent, but doctors might miss a closed degloving injury unless they request an MRI, x-ray, or other imaging tests.

Compression is often used to treat closed degloving injuries. The doctors force the layers of skin together until they heal. They might operate to remove dead tissue or drain fluid from the gap between the layers of skin and soft tissue.

For an open degloving injury, the doctors might need to perform multiple surgeries to repair the damage. First, they might need to reconnect blood vessels to restore blood supply to the area to prevent the flesh from dying. They might also need to reconnect nerves to prevent loss of sensation.

Doctors might perform one or more skin grafts to cover the wound. However, even with surgery, a person may lose sensation, lose control of the injured body part, and have significant scarring and disfigurement.

Unfortunately, doctors cannot treat all degloving injuries. In some cases, the injury is so severe that the doctor cannot reattach the layers of skin separated from the body. In these cases, the doctor might remove the skin and close the wound or amputate if they cannot close the wound.

What Compensation Can I Receive for a Degloving Injury in New York?

The compensation for a degloving injury in New York depends on the severity of the injury and the circumstances involved in the personal injury case.

However, most accident victims can recover compensation for economic damages that includes:

The cost of medical treatment, care, medications, physical therapy, and other expenses
The loss of income, wages, and benefits, including a decrease in future earning capacity
Out-of-pocket expenses and costs
Household services and personal care
Nursing care, including in-home nurses and long-term nursing facilities
Medical equipment, modifications for impairments, and prosthesis for amputees

In addition to compensation for monetary losses, an injured party may be entitled to a settlement or award for their non-economic damages.

These damages cover the pain and suffering a person experiences, including:

Emotional distress
Loss of enjoyment of life
Physical pain and discomfort
Scarring and disfigurement
Mental anguish and trauma
Lifelong and long-term impairments and disabilities
A decrease in the person’s quality of life

The amount you receive for a degloving injury claim generally increases with the severity of the injury and damages. However, claims of failure to mitigate damages and comparative fault can reduce the amount you receive.

Working with an experienced New York City personal injury lawyer can help. Lawyers understand the tactics used by insurance companies to undervalue damages. Your lawyer will work to maximize the value of your injury claim by focusing on the factors that increase the value of damages.

How Long Do I Have To File a Degloving Injury Claim in New York?

The New York statutes of limitations set deadlines for filing claims and lawsuits for personal injuries. The filing deadline depends on the type of case.

For example, most personal injury claims have a three-year statute of limitations that begins on the injury date. However, family members who lost a loved one have just two years from the date of death to file a wrongful death lawsuit.

There are exceptions to the statutes of limitations that can shorten or lengthen the deadlines. For example, injury claims against the government require you to provide notice of the claim within 90 days. After that, you have just a year to file a lawsuit.

The best way to avoid missing a filing deadline is to speak to a New York personal injury attorney as soon as possible. The attorney will evaluate your claim to determine your legal options and the filing deadline.

Contact Our New York City Personal Injury Lawyers for Help Seeking Compensation for a Degloving Injury

Degloving injuries are painful and can cause long-term problems. Contact our law firm to schedule a free consultation with an experienced New York personal injury attorney from the Law Offices of Jay S. Knispel Personal Injury Lawyers at (212) 564 2800. Let us help you get the compensation you deserve in a personal injury claim.