Home » Burbank Bed Sore/Pressure Sore Attorney

Burbank Bed Sore/Pressure Sore Attorney

Bedsores affect millions of people every year. However, when these injuries result from the negligent actions of an individual or facility you trusted to care for you or your loved one, you may be entitled to compensation. Bedsores can often lead to devastating consequences, including life-changing health problems and crippling expenses.

If you or a loved one sustained a severe bedsore injury because of improper care or another person’s wrongful actions, you should not deal with these tragic repercussions on your own. Instead, reach out to a skilled Burbank bedsore attorney, such as those at Yarian Accident & Injury Lawyers.

Let these experienced legal professionals help you fight for the justice and financial damages you deserve.

Yarian Accident & Injury Lawyers, APC—About Us

Yarian Accident & Injury Lawyers, APC, was founded to help individuals hurt in an accident achieve positive results in their claims. The firm has surpassed this goal and helped countless clients in Burbank and the greater Los Angeles area with their legal claims.

Even with all our successes over the years, our focus remains on providing our clients with the attention and respect their case deserves while ensuring they get fairly compensated for their harm and losses.

As a result of this hard work, dedication, and drive, our firm recovered millions of dollars on behalf of our clients and became a member of the Esteemed Lawyers of America (ELOA), a directory of reputable legal professionals. We are also a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, a prestigious group of trial lawyers who have won multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements on behalf of their clients.

What Is a Bedsore?

Bedsores, also referred to as pressure sores or decubitus ulcers, are areas of broken skin that develop in people who:

• Are confined in bed for extended periods
• Cannot move for short periods, primarily if they are thin, have a neurological disease, or have a blood vessel disease
• Use a bedside chair or a wheelchair

Bedsores are common in nursing homes or hospitals or with those needing at-home care.

Bedsores usually form where the weight of the individual’s body presses the skin against the firm surface of the bed. As a result of this pressure, the skin’s blood supply temporarily stops, damaging the skin cells. Consequently, if this pressure is not quickly relieved, the skin will start to show signs of an injury.

Typical Areas Where Bed Sores Form

A person confined to their bed most commonly develops bedsores on the:

• Hip
• Heels
• Elbows
• Spine
• Lower back
• Tailbone
• Shoulder blades
• Ears, when the individual lays on their side
• Back of the head

However, if an individual uses a wheelchair, these bedsores usually form on the buttocks and the bottom of the feet. The pressure does not have to be intense for sores to appear. Under normal circumstances, the skin tends to be protected from pressure injuries through continuous movement, even when the person is asleep. That is why even light extended pressure can lead to sores.

Factors That Contribute to Bedsores

Bedsores typically begin with a red patch. With additional pressure and without protection, this red patch can form into a blister or an open sore. In severe cases, the damage can extend through the different skin layers and create a crater, exposing the muscles and bones and leading to several layers of damaged tissue.

However, although skin pressure is generally the leading cause of bedsores, other factors can also contribute:

• Moisture: If there is wetness left unattended, arising from feces, urine, or sweat between the skin and the bed, bedsore injuries are more likely. This moisture is common with those who cannot control their bowels or bladder.
• Lack of Movement: If a person cannot roll from side to side or lift themselves off the bed, they are more likely to experience bedsores. Small movements throughout the day help the skin get the oxygen and nutrients they need. Without them, bedsore injuries are common.
• Friction: Friction results in the skin stretching and the blood vessels kinking, impairing blood circulation in the skin. Friction injuries are common when a person is confined to their bed, sliding against the bedsheets.
• Circulation Issues: Individuals who have circulatory problems from localized swelling or long-term diabetes may be more likely to develop bedsores, primarily because the skin’s blood flow is weak, even before the pressure to the problem area.
• Nutrition Problems: If a person does not get enough minerals, vitamins, or protein, they are more likely to develop a bedsore injury.
• Age: Those 85 years and older are more prone to bedsores because the skin becomes more fragile over time.
• Less Sensation: Those with nerve issues and a decreased ability to feel pain or discomfort are more likely to develop a bedsore injury because of an inability to feel the effects of prolonged pressure on the skin.

Bedsore Symptoms To Watch Out For

Bedsores are generally classified into four different stages, depending on the severity of skin damage.

These stages include:

• Stage One (Red Skin): The first stage of a bedsore is skin damage, which often presents as a red patch of skin that does not turn white when you press on it. Those who have darker skin may have a patch that appears blue or purple, and it is harder to see. In addition, the area around the patch will appear tender, itchy, firm, and feel warm or cold.
• Stage Two (Blistered or Broken Skin): After the skin is injured, it can develop into a blister or an open sore. There can also be mild swelling and some oozing due to the injury.
• Stage Three (Broken Skin and Open Wounds): In this stage, the bedsore can become a shallow crater below the skin’s surface.
• Stage Four (Deep Ulcers): Once the individual reaches the fourth stage, they will often have a crater in their skin reaching the bone, joints, tendons, and muscles.

Because these bedsores result in broken skin, they are often vulnerable to infections.

Watch out for signs of infection:

• Pus coming from the bedsore
• A bad-smelling odor coming from the sore
• A fever
• Increased redness, heat, and tenderness in the surrounding skin

Deadly Complications of a Bedsore

Although bedsore injuries are often associated with excruciating pain, they can also lead to significant medical issues, such as devastating infections, which can kill patients without proper treatment.

For example:

• Cellulitis: This is an infection of the skin and the connected soft tissues, which results in swelling, warmth, and redness of the affected area. People with this condition often do not feel pain in the area affected by cellulitis.
• Infections: When an infection from a bedsore wound burrows into a person’s joints, it can damage the tissue and cartilage. If the bedsore spreads into the bone, an infection also known as osteomyelitis can impact a person’s function of their limbs and joints.
• Cancer: Long-term, non-healing wounds can develop into squamous cell carcinoma.
• Sepsis: A bedsore can also develop into sepsis, a potentially life-threatening condition when the body’s response to an infection damages its tissues.

Bringing Legal Action Following a Bedsore Injury

If you or someone in your family developed a severe bedsore injury at a facility such as a hospital or a nursing home, you may be able to pursue legal action against the facility and the care providers.

To sue the facility for this lack of care, you must show:

• The establishment and its care providers owed you a duty of care.
• The establishment and its care providers breached this duty of care.
• This violation caused you or a loved one to develop bed sores or made current bed sores worse, and
• This bedsore injury resulted in significant losses and financial damages.

Some common examples of a facility’s negligence that may lead to bedsore injuries include:

• Patients who are not being regularly repositioned or turned
• Patients who are not getting proper nutrition and hydration
• Patients who have bedsores that are not cleaned and dressed properly

Yet, the best way to verify whether you have a valid bedsore injury claim is to reach out to an experienced Burbank bedsore attorney, such as those at Yarian Accident & Injury Lawyers, APC, as soon as you can. These attorneys can not only review your case and figure out what legal options you can pursue, but they can also help you pursue maximum compensation.

Actions to Take After You Notice a Bedsore On Your Loved One

If your loved one developed a significant bedsore injury, and you believe it is due to a hospital or nursing home facility’s negligence, act quickly. Make sure your loved one gets immediate medical treatment and take specific steps to protect their legal rights.

These steps include:

• Take videos or photographs of the bedsores and write down the date of each sore.
• Request documentation from the facility, including performance reports of the staff responsible for your loved one’s care.
• Obtain copies of any negligent allegations or former claims against the facility.
• Ask for an explanation of the facility’s steps to take care of its residents.
• Request for a list of existing reprimands, warnings, or violations of the facility.

If you cannot obtain these documents, do not worry. After you hire an experienced bedsore lawyer to handle your case, your lawyer can promptly get to work, gathering the evidence needed to prove your loved one sustained severe injuries because of the facility’s reckless, intentional, or negligent actions.

How Can an Experienced Bedsore Lawyer Help You and Your Family?

Because bedsores are often associated with a hospital’s or nursing home’s negligence or abuse, it is important to reach out to an experienced Burbank bedsore attorney as soon as possible, especially since skilled lawyers will likely represent these facilities and care providers.

Once you retain a lawyer to take on your case, you will not have to worry about handling this complex legal battle.

Your lawyers can:

• Thoroughly investigate the incident, gather the evidence needed to show fault and damages, and help you figure out your legal options.
• Bring in experts to substantiate your claim, such as health care professionals.
• Handle all discussions with the other side and the insurance company and fight for a just settlement offer.
• Proceed to trial if the other side is unwilling to offer you a fair settlement and fight for maximum financial damages.

If you or a family member sustained a bedsore injury due to another individual’s wrongful actions, do not wait to get the legal help you need. Instead, contact Yarian Accident & Injury Lawyers, APC, today at (213) 296-0825 for your free case consultation, and let our attorneys help you fight for the financial recovery you deserve.

Yarian Accident & Injury Lawyers Burbank Office
700 N Central Ave Suite 470
Burbank, CA 91203
(818) 459-4999

Client Testimonials

I hope you never need an attorney, but if you do, I can’t recommend Levik Yarian enough. His office and staff helped me with my personal injury case. They guided me through the whole process and always called to update me about he status of my case. Very grateful for the settlement they got me and for all their hard work. Thank you Levik Yarian and staff!!!!

– Nane H.