71-Year-Old Man Sustained Cervical Fracture from Motor Vehicle Accident; Settled for $800,000

A 71-year-old man, struck by a vehicle making an unsafe lane change suffered from a cervical fracture. The following week, the man's hands became numb and he was taken to a different hospital by his wife, where it was determined that he had suffered an acute compression fracture of the C7 vertebral body. He was unable to undergo surgery because doctors concluded he was not a good candidate for Anesthesia. As a result, he was placed in a halo traction vest and remained hospitalized for two weeks. A follow-up CT scan indicated an increased widening of the fracture, which necessitated surgery, and resulted in several additional weeks in the halo vest, and another month and a half in a hard collar. The plaintiff has been unable to return to his full-time work as a senior aerospace engineer. Daniel M. Hodes of Hodes Milman , represented the plaintiff resulting in a settlement of $800,000 for medical expenses, loss of income and pain and suffering.