Long-Term Effects of a DC Burn Injury 

A burn injury is caused by heat or cold. Fire is the biggest cause of burns. Other causes of burns are dry ice, chemicals, and hot oil. When someone suffers a severe burn, the first thing they should do is get medical treatment. The long-term effects of a DC burn injury can be both physical and emotional, which is why it is important to seek medical treatment as soon as possible.

 Even if someone has a burn that they think is not a big deal, it could kill the skin that was burned. Even though it hurts right away, that may be a sign that the skin is dead, and this can cause problems. If the burn is just a minor injury, the person is still entitled to compensation for the medical bills and losses suffered. If an individual has sustained serious burns, they should consult an accomplished burn injury lawyer that could help them recover the damages that they deserve.

Different Types of Burns

A first-degree burn is not as serious other than it is uncomfortable. There are two types of second-degree burns, the superficial second-degree and a deep second-degree burn. A superficial second-degree burn is a burn on the skin. 

First degree burns typically go away within a few days. A second-degree burn may have lingering effects. Third-degree burns are the most serious and the long-term effects of a DC burn injury are often the most life-altering. The third-degree burn is usually a disfiguring burn that comes along with keloid scarring that may require surgery. 

Impact Severe Burns Can Have on Someone’s Life

When someone has a severe burn, medical professionals must abrade the skin. The burned skin must be abraded to remove the dead and damaged skin to promote re-growth. The person has scarring and lingering pain. People, especially manual laborers, cannot work anymore. They have skin graft surgeries and lingering pain. The long-term effects of a DC burn injury are the psychological implications such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, or anger. There is also the cost of medical care as well as the lost wages because of the inability to work. 

How a Burn Victim Could Help Their Attorney

A person with a burn injury case can help the lawyer by providing witness statements, police reports, and pictures of the burn because they can cause disfigurement. The person should not talk to the insurance company.

Pictures of and medical testimony concerning the burns are the most commonly used evidence in a burn case. If the person can take pictures of their burn shortly after they occurred, the pictures are particularly effective. 

The lawyer obtains pictures of the burns because burns are the most visually disturbing images. They also gather statements, investigative reports, and medical records. 

Collecting Evidence in Burn Injury Cases

There are two parts of the case: liability and damages. To show liability, the attorney obtains witness statements and police reports. If necessary, the lawyer can get an engineer or accident reconstructionist to reconstruct how the accident happened and opine that there are violations or some triggering factor caused by the defendant’s negligence. 

Evidence Used to Secure Damages in Burn Injury Cases

There are two categories of damages: economic and non-economic. Non-economic damages are pain and suffering. The best way to gather non-economic damage evidence is to take pictures from the person’s life before the accident and show how their life changed because of the accident by showing a day-in-the-life video or post-accident pictures of the burns. The lawyer obtains medical records, medical bills, employment records, gets experts testimony, tax returns, and documents lost wages. The lawyer can get a vocational or rehabilitation expert to opine on the need for future care. If necessary, an economist can project the loss of income going forward and the cost of medical care in the future for as long as the person is anticipated to live.

Qualities to Look for in a DC Burn Injury Attorney

Someone with a burn injury wants to know that the law firm that they are working with is of a sufficient size and that an insurance company cannot overwhelm them. The firm must have enough resources to prosecute the claim fully. A burn victim should be able to trust their attorney and have a good rapport with them. Due to the long-term effects of a DC burn injury, it is imperative that those injured work with a compassionate attorney that could help them recover compensation for their injuries.