Getting a second opinion on mri scan

micko999

hi i wonder if anyone could help with some advice. I was in a horrific car accident 3 years ago .My gp suspected i had some concussion and gave me diazepam for my nerves. I was hit by an artic lorry spun round and and pushed 500 yards up the motorway before he realised what he had done. he got prosecuted by the police.
I have had neck pain since then and was recently sent for an mri.
The mri shows many issues with my neck that i dont really understand. The doctors are apparently court approved doctors and i have 2 opinions.
1. One doctor states that because there was no mri before the accident it is difficult to ascertain damage that would have been directly related to the accident but its clear that my spine problems were quiescent prior to the accident and he expects me to have neck problems for the rest of my life.
2. the second doctor stated that he feels it probable that accident accounted for specifically 12 to 18 months of my pain and that my ongoing problems are degenerative and not related to the accident.
The second opinion i found difficult to accept as the pain has been exactly the same in nature since the accident. It also means i will get a paltry 3000 in compensation for a problem i will have for the rest of my life. I know i have to be pragmatic but because its so important i was wondering if anyone knew how to get another opinion on the mri as its wording is so complex and i have no faith in the personal injury people representing me. thanks so much for reading.

Chris_Pollard

Micko. Do you have any personal protection insurance, life assurance, income protection or critical illness? Some of these product have "value added services" that might also include a "second opinion" service. The additions are relatively new (say 4/5 years in the market) but worth pointing out. So check out if you have this option on personal insurance.

If you don't have anything like this, you would be free to pay for a private consultation with a specialist doctor. However this is likely to be expensive as you will need to make sure your MRI and medical records are going to be reviewed by someone who would be considered an expert. It's likely that the medical opinions you've received have been consultant physicians. I wonder if your GP has the medical evidence and could perhaps help point you in the direction of a specialist who might be able to help?

Both medical opinions seem reasonably consistent over there being evidence of some spinal problems/degeneration. With regard to the second view, I'm not sure how certain one can be as to when you might be expected to have problems had the accident not occurred. Suggesting that the accident might account for x duration seems somewhat specific although insurers are (understandably) keen for the medical profession to be as specific as possible.

The point that there have been no previous MRI's is one that can be used in two ways. The insurer's offer is predicated on the basis that you had a pre-existing condition likely to cause neck pain later in life, whilst conceding that the accident can be attributed to accelerating the symptoms. However, it would be reasonable to contend that some of the degenerative abnormalities that were shown on the MRI could have been present for many years and hence you may have had many, many years without any cervical symptoms. Both views are highly subjective as often these claims can be, particularly with neck pain. Most people over 40-45 will have some degree of degenerative changes any many will be blissfully unaware of it.

If you were to pay for a private opinion yourself this is likely to cost anywhere between £500-£1,000. Perhaps this is a case of entering into a negotiation with the insurer with a view to them increasing their offer to something closer to what you might consider acceptable to allow you to move on.

I'm sorry that you are going to have lasting neck discomfort, and I sincerely hope that you find a good coping strategy perhaps with some treatment/interventions that will alleviate your situation. It might sound daft as a brush but one positive step might be to get the claim concluded as the more you are pre-occupied and focussed on this claim, the more aware you'll be of the neck pain. I'm seriously not being dismissive but once you have got this episode settled and can move on, things might be better for you.

I hope this is of some help, and I wish you the best of luck

micko999

Thanks for a brilliant reply. I take on board all your comments and yes strangely enough when I am forced to reflect on these issues the neck seems worse. I am a pragmatic person and realise the industry is under huge pressure to dismiss genuine claims. I have fully accepted now that the compensation will be very poor indeed and will live with that. However to get closure I need to sit eye to eye with an expert who can explain my mri and all the issues in it.. The cost is not an issue Huge thanks for your comments.

FutureGirl

The second doctor may have been in a different discipline to the first one.

Usually I see people seen by an Orthopaedic, then have an MRI, and the same Orthopaedic surgeon then reviews the MRI report - OR they are seen by an Orthopaedic, and they are then sent to a more specialist doctor, such as a spinal surgeon.

Don't forget that your representatives have an interest in getting you as much compensation as possible, especially if they're takin a % of it.

Also for a 12 - 18 month injury you'd be looking at a bit more than £3,000.00.