Herniated Disc Injury After Harrisburg Car Crash

Young man about to enter MRI maching Moments after a car crash in Harrisburg, you walk away feeling shaken but okay. You don’t seem to have any broken bones. No visible cuts or bruises either. You decline medical treatment and the ambulance because nothing hurts badly enough to warrant it.

Unfortunately, it’s very common to feel no pain right after a car crash – even when you have visible injuries. But hours, days or even weeks later, you may wish you had seen a doctor right away. Your lower back aches. You have sharp pains shooting down your leg making even simple movements difficult. Even without immediate signs of damage, your crash may have caused a herniated disc—a serious spinal injury that can have delayed symptoms.

At Schmidt Kramer, our Harrisburg car accident lawyers have extensive experience handling complex injury claims involving herniated discs. We understand how hidden back injuries develop, and how insurance companies often try to deny them. We also know how to build strong cases that secure full compensation for our clients.

Call for a free case review with our trusted Harrisburg law firm today. 717-727-2500.

What Is a Herniated Disc?

A spinal disc is a cushion that sits between the bones in your back. Think of it like a jelly donut—it has a tough, fibrous outer ring and a soft, gel-like center. These discs absorb shock when you move, bend, or twist.

Your spine has 23 of these discs stacked between your vertebrae. A herniated disc is what happens when the outer ring weakens or tears, causing the soft inner material to push through the tear and bulge outward.

When this bulging material presses on nearby spinal nerves, it causes problems. You might feel sharp pain, numbness, tingling, or muscle weakness. Doctors sometimes call this condition a slipped disc, ruptured disc, or bulging disc. The pain often radiates from your back down into your arms or legs, depending on where the herniation occurs.

Can a Car Crash Cause a Herniated Disc?

Yes. Car crashes are one of the leading causes of herniated discs. The sudden, violent forces involved in a collision put enormous stress on your spine—even in crashes that seem minor.

When another vehicle hits yours, your body absorbs the impact. And during that impact, your spine may get twisted, compressed, or hyperextended in awkward ways it was never designed to move. This traumatic force can cause the outer ring of a spinal disc to tear instantly. In other cases, the impact weakens the disc structure, and the herniation develops over the following days or weeks.

The speed and direction of impact matter, but even low-speed collisions can herniate a disc. Rear-end crashes commonly cause cervical (neck) herniations because your head whips backward and forward. Side-impact and head-on collisions often damage the lumbar (lower back) discs. Your body doesn’t need to be thrown from the vehicle or visibly injured for serious spinal damage to occur.

How Do I Know if My Back Pain Is a Herniated Disc – Are There Symptoms?

You cannot diagnose a herniated disc on your own. Back pain after a car crash can stem from many different injuries. The only way to know for sure is to see a doctor and undergo diagnostic testing like an MRI or CT scan.

What is tricky about herniated disc symptoms is that they often don’t appear immediately after a crash. You may even feel fine at the accident scene, then wake up the next morning in pain. Some people don’t experience symptoms for days or even weeks later. This delay happens because inflammation and nerve compression take time to develop.

Common symptoms of a herniated disc include:

Sharp or Burning Pain: You feel intense pain in your lower back, neck, or between your shoulder blades that may worsen with movement.
Radiating Pain: Pain shoots down your arm or leg, often following the path of the compressed nerve.
Numbness or Tingling: You experience a pins-and-needles sensation in your extremities, or certain areas feel numb to touch.
Muscle Weakness: Your arm, leg, or foot feels weak, making it difficult to grip objects or walk normally.
Pain That Worsens With Certain Movements: Bending, sitting, coughing, or sneezing increases your discomfort.
Limited Range of Motion: You struggle to turn your neck or bend your back without significant pain.

When Should I See a Doctor After My Harrisburg Car Crash?

You should see a doctor right after your car crash, even if you feel fine. Internal injuries, like herniated discs, don’t always cause immediate pain. Your body releases adrenaline during a traumatic event, which initially masks pain and injury symptoms. By the time the adrenaline wears off and pain sets in, hours or days may have passed. This time delay allows injuries to worsen.

When you seek medical care right away – tell the treating ER physician that you were involved in a crash, along with any symptoms you have at the time. This gives them insight as to the type of diagnostic testing you may need to identify and treat your injuries before they worsen. Early treatment helps to prevent serious complications and gives you the best chance at a full recovery.

Why Waiting to Get Medical Care Can Hurt Your Pennsylvania Injury Claim

Seeking medical care right away protects your legal rights. Insurance companies routinely fight paying compensation on herniated discs and other back injury claims. If you wait days or weeks to seek treatment, you give them the ammunition they need to fairly argue that your injuries weren’t serious or were not even caused by the crash. They can claim you must have hurt yourself doing something else after the accident.

Medical records created immediately after your collision directly link your herniated disc to the crash that caused it. This documentation becomes crucial evidence when you file your herniated disc injury claim. The longer you wait, the harder it will be to prove your injuries were caused by the car crash and not something else.

Even if the emergency room doctor doesn’t order an MRI or CT scan during your first visit, go anyway. That initial medical record documents that you were involved in a crash and that you sought treatment right away because you thought you might be hurt. If your herniated disc symptoms worsen and you need diagnostic testing later, you already have proof that your injury process began immediately after the accident.

Why Insurance Companies Fight Herniated Disc Injury Claims

Insurance companies don’t want to pay full compensation for herniated disc injuries. These cases often involve substantial medical bills, long-term treatment, and significant pain and suffering damages.

To minimize back injury claims, insurers often use specific tried and true tactics because they know most injury victims don’t fully know their rights or how to fight back.

Common insurance tactics against herniated disc injuries include:

Using Delayed Symptoms in Their Favor: Insurers can claim your herniated disc existed before the crash, was caused by something else, or is the result of wear and tear.
Minimizing Your Pain: Adjusters argue that herniated discs are common and don’t always cause serious problems, ignoring the extent of your symptoms and limitations.
Questioning Treatments: Insurance companies challenge whether you really need surgery, physical therapy, or pain management. They may label your medical care as excessive or unnecessary.
Using Time Gaps in Treatment Against You: If you miss appointments or delay follow-up care, insurers claim you must not be in real pain or your injuries aren’t serious.
Pushing for Quick Settlements: Adjusters offer fast, low settlements before you understand the full extent of your injury, hoping you’ll accept less than your claim is worth.
Demanding Independent Medical Exams: Insurance companies send you to their own doctors who often downplay your injuries or claim they’re unrelated to the crash.

Why Seek Legal Help for Herniated Disc Injuries After a Car Crash

Herniated disc cases are complex. Insurance companies know most crash victims don’t understand how to value these injuries or prove their connection to the accident.

An experienced Harrisburg car accident lawyer will level the legal playing field to your advantage and fight for the full compensation you deserve. These are some of the ways an attorney will fight for your case:

Gathering the Right Medical Evidence: Your attorney works with your doctors to obtain detailed records, imaging results, and expert opinions that prove your herniated disc resulted from the crash.
Calculating the Full Value of Your Damages: We account for all your losses—past and future medical bills, lost wages, reduced earning capacity, pain and suffering, and permanent disability.
Managing All Insurance Communications: Your lawyer deals with adjusters so you can focus on recovery without saying something that hurts your claim.
Negotiating Fair Settlements: We reject the lowball offers insurance companies often try to get away with and negotiate aggressively until they give you a fair offer.
Being Prepared to Represent You in a Trial: Insurance companies take your claim more seriously when they know your attorney will go to court if necessary.
Working on Contingency: We take on the financial risk, so you pay us nothing upfront. We only collect our fees if we win your case.

Call Our Trusted Harrisburg Law Firm for a Free Case Review Today

A herniated disc can change your life. If that happens, you deserve experienced legal representation to work tirelessly on your behalf to recover every dollar you need and deserve.

At Schmidt Kramer, we’ve helped countless Harrisburg car crash victims recover compensation for herniated discs and other back injuries. We know how to build strong cases and stand up to insurance companies that try to minimize your claim.

Contact our Harrisburg law office for a free consultation today or complete our quick, easy, and confidential case evaluation form for a quick callback.

Schmidt Kramer. Let our Harrisburg law firm help you today. 717-727-2500.

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One of the best decisions I ever made was choosing Schmidt-Kramer as my personal injury representative. I was given Scott Cooper's name through a family member shortly after my accident in July of 2024. After contacting the Schmidt-Kramer office, Scott came out and visited me in the hospital the very next day. From the very beginning, he was compassionate, upfront, and honest. He ALWAYS responded to my calls, texts, and/or e-mails in a timely manner and kept me up to date on developments in my case. I am very pleased with the outcome and highly recommend this law firm.
Very caring and compassionate
Debra Zervanos
Gerry and his team were very caring and compassionate. Gerry was always very responsive to me whether it be phone calls or emails. He kept me updated every single step of the way. His team and himself worked tirelessly to get me the best possible outcome to my situation. He was able to wrap everything up within two years with a nice bow on it. I will forever be grateful and will recommend him to everyone.
Dakota Cravener
Solid, trustworthy and lucky to have on your side! Dennis Kergick represented me and I was very impressed. Finally a down to earth and easy to talk to attorney . When the time came he was a junk yard dog and I could see the opposing counsel was intimidated. All while maintaining a professional level of respect and courtesy. Would recommend to friends and family. Keep up the good work!!
It’s hard to believe it’s been four years already, but I’m still deeply thankful for my experience with Dennis. Now living in Illinois, I’ve had some similar encounters, and people here are often surprised — and even a bit shocked — when they hear my story. They always end up admitting just how good Dennis truly was. It’s something I didn’t fully realize at the time, but the more I share, the more it’s confirmed to me. God bless, and thank you I came back stronger than ever.

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Herniated Disc After a Harrisburg Car Crash: A Legal Guide