Case details
Plaintiff: Neck injuries related to multiple-impact rear-ender
SUMMARY
$10526
Amount
Verdict-Plaintiff
Result type
Not present
Ruling
KEYWORDS
bulging disc, cervical, neck
FACTS
On April 13, 2011, plaintiff Samantha Kekua, 27, a retail manager who had scoliosis, was stopped at a red light at the corner of Qualcomm Way and Camino Del Rio North in San Diego when her vehicle was rear-ended by Thomas Behrle’s vehicle. Behrle then hit the accelerator a second time, and Kekua’s vehicle was rear-ended again. Kekua claimed to her neck. Kekua sued Behrle, alleging the defendant was negligent in the operation of his vehicle. Behrle admitted liability., Kekua claimed the accident aggravated her prior spinal condition, causing her to sustain cervical disc bulges. The day after the collision, Kekua presented to an urgent care facility with a complaint of neck pain. She then did not see a doctor again until July 2, 2011, when she went to an emergency room after experiencing excruciating neck pain, akin to a pinched nerve, while putting her hair up in a towel. Kekua subsequently visited her general physician, who prescribed six sessions of physical therapy in late July 2011. Between August 2011 and September 2011, Kekua attended, and completed, six sessions of physical therapy, which alleviated some, but not all of the pain. Although Kekua allegedly continued to experience fluctuating neck pain for the next couple of years, she never returned to physical therapy or underwent surgery. Instead, she continued to take pain medication to manage her pain. Almost two years after the accident, Kekua was referred to a specialist and underwent an MRI, which showed cervical disc bulges at the C4-5 and C5-6 levels. The plaintiff’s orthopedic surgery expert opined that Kekua’s scoliosis rods fused much of her lower and middle portions of the spine, leaving Kekua’s neck as the only flexible portion of the spine. The expert therefore opined that Kekua was more susceptible to neck and that the disc bulges in Kekua’s neck were caused by the subject car accident. Plaintiff’s counsel noted that Kekua had no pre-existing pain prior to the collision. Defense counsel denied that Kekua’s neck were causally related to the subject collision, as there was a three-month lapse between the car accident and the date Kekua first experienced the intense pain in her neck. Moreover, defense counsel noted that Kekua did not seek any medical treatment for over a year after the car accident. The defense’s neurosurgery expert opined that the only injury Kekua sustained as a result of the accident was a minor whiplash injury. Thus, defense counsel argued that, with the exception of the initial urgent care visit, all of the subsequent treatment Kekua received was unrelated to the subject car accident.
COURT
Superior Court of San Diego County, San Diego, CA
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- extradural hematoma
- face
- facial bone
- fracture
- head
- headaches
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- speech
- subdural hematoma
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