SIRVA, or Shoulder Injury Related to Vaccine Administration, can occasionally occur after you receive a vaccine. Although a little bit of soreness is normal after you get a vaccine injected in your arm, significant pain in the shoulder joint area or surrounding tissues is not. Although the risk of a SIRVA injury is rare, it’s not impossible, and if this is something you or a loved one has suffered from, you may need the assistance of a SIRVA lawyer.
Symptoms of SIRVA
According to WebMD, “the main signs of SIRVA are serious shoulder pain and less range of motion, meaning trouble with moving your shoulder normally.”
But severe pain and shoulder-related injuries like adhesive capsulitis, bursitis, a rotator cuff injury (tendonitis or tear of the rotator cuff), nerve irritation, numbness, tingling (paresthesia), and other intense injuries are also possible when you suffer from SIRVA. Long-term complications from injuries related to vaccine administration may make you eligible to make a SIRVA claim.
According to the Journal of Hand Global Surgery Online, shared by the National Center for Biotechnology Information/the United States National Library of Medicine, “Most instances of SIRVA are associated with errant placement of the needle and/or local reaction to the delivered serum during administration of the vaccine.”
While the report notes that most shoulder complaints after receiving a vaccine “resolve within 24 to 48 hours,” some patients deal with debilitating shoulder pain. Fortunately, there are legal avenues to pursue to seek justice after suffering from SIRVA.
What Kind of SIRVA Cases Are Accepted for Claims?
Receiving almost any vaccine and suffering from SIRVA potentially qualifies you for a SIRVA claim. Generally, for cases our firm will pursue, you must have experienced an onset of pain in the vaccinated shoulder within 48 hours of vaccination and reported your pain to a medical professional within 3 months of the vaccination.
Phillips Law Group is looking specifically into cases involving the influenza vaccine, Tdap vaccine, Prevnar vaccine, and more. Those suffering from Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS), Transverse myelitis, Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis, Optic Neuritis myelitis, Neuromyelitis Optica, Immune Thrombocytopenia Purpura (ITP), Myositis or dermatomyositis, and more may be eligible to make a claim.
Please contact our firm to discuss your specific circumstances and to learn more now.
What Type of Compensation Can I Receive if My Vaccine Injury Lawyer Is Successful?
If the administration of a vaccine has injured your shoulder, you can receive reimbursement of the medical costs and incidental expenses you incurred. For example, if your shoulder injury prevents you from performing household tasks, causing you to hire someone to help, you can claim that expense if you have receipts or other documentation as proof. Furthermore, a shoulder injury related to vaccine administration (SIRVA) lawyer can help you regain your income loss if your injury hindered your ability to work.
You can claim damages for pain and suffering. This form of damages provides compensation for physical pain, disability, emotional distress, and diminished quality of life due to your shoulder injury. The attorneys at Phillips Law Group can help you compile evidence proving how your vaccine injury has impacted your life.
How Long Do I Have To File a SIRVA Claim?
The claim must be filed within three years of first experiencing symptoms related to the injury. For a SIRVA claim to be viable, the onset of shoulder pain should have occurred within 48 hours of receiving the vaccine. Therefore, three years from the vaccine date is a general guideline for calculating your time limit to bring a claim.
What Should I Do if I Believe a Vaccine Has Injured Me?
Medical records, including information about the type of vaccine and the date of administration, symptoms, and a medical professional’s diagnosis of your injury, are necessary. If medical opinions correlate symptoms with the vaccine, they should be included.
Contact one of the vaccine injury attorneys at Phillips Law Group to review the claim and determine whether there are grounds for a successful vaccine injury case. If information is missing, they can help obtain it.
If a loved one dies from a vaccine injury, the Personal Representative of their estate can file a vaccine injury claim on their behalf. They must file within two years of the date of death and no more than four years from the onset of symptoms related to the vaccine.
The Personal Representative should contact a SIRVA lawyer with as much information as possible about the vaccine the deceased person received and the date of administration. The attorney will also review the deceased person’s medical records to assess the viability of a claim.
How Do I Prove That a Vaccine Caused My Shoulder Injury?
Comprehensive medical records documenting the vaccine type and administration date, the onset of symptoms, and a medical professional diagnosis of one of the recognized shoulder conditions associated with vaccine administration are necessary. These include frozen shoulder, impingement, tendinitis, bursitis, and rotator cuff injuries.
Symptoms associated with SIRVA include:
- Shoulder pain that begins within 48 hours of vaccine administration and persists for weeks or months
- Decreased range of motion in the shoulder
- Loss of strength in the affected arm
- Shoulder swelling
- Pain that radiates from the shoulder down the arm
A valid SIRVA claim is not contingent on all these symptoms.
How Long Does It Take To Resolve a SIRVA Claim?
The process of resolving a SIRVA claim is slow. If the claim proceeds through administrative review without issue, a claim can expect compensation within one to two years.
Objections to a claim requiring more information will result in a delay. If further information does not satisfy the reviewer and the case goes to hearing, it could take up to four years from the date of application to claim resolution.
The attorneys at Phillips Law Group are experienced in pursuing vaccine injury cases and will do everything possible to ensure your claim proceeds efficiently.
How a SIRVA Lawyer Can Help
A SIRVA lawyer can help individuals who have sustained shoulder injuries due to vaccine administration. They understand vaccine injury claims and the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP), a federal program designed to compensate individuals harmed by vaccines.
If you experienced SIRVA after receiving a vaccination, you may be eligible for compensation and a lawyer with specific skills in this area can help. An injury lawyer like the ones on the team at Phillips Law Group can help secure the compensation you deserve for medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering.
Our lawyers can make sure each SIRVA case is handled with the attention and knowledge it requires, just as we work hard to pursue justice for any of the claims we handle for our clients. If you or a loved one has suffered from debilitating pain after receiving a vaccine in your shoulder, it is important to seek the advice of a qualified SIRVA lawyer to determine your legal options.
Contact Phillips Law Group for Assistance
The team at Phillips Law Group has been serving the Arizona community for more than 30 years. We are a trusted voice among Phoenix personal injury lawyers and have a proven track record of success that shows that we know how to best advocate on behalf of our clients.
If you would like more information about your legal options after being diagnosed with Shoulder Injury Related to Vaccine Administration, please don’t hesitate to contact us to learn more. Our firm can offer a free, no-obligation consultation that is totally confidential and we can walk you through what a SIRVA claims process looks like and advocate for you every step of the way.
Please call 602-222-2222 to find out more today. We look forward to hearing from you and pursuing justice for your potential SIRVA case. Call today!
Available 24/7