Ligament Tears

For over 20 years, the Massachusetts workers’ compensation lawyers at Kantrovitz & Associates have successfully handled all types of workplace injury claims, including those related to torn ligaments. We are proud to serve injured workers across Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire.

The most common ligament torn is the anterior cruciate ligament holding the knee joints. These ligaments join the upper and lower leg bones and stabilize the knee. A tear in one of these two ligaments can have various consequences, including:

• Severe pain
• Osteoarthritis
• Loss of cartilage
• Separation of bones
• Torn pads/joint cushions
• Chronic ligament deficiency
• Damage to other knee parts, bone

Because our legs are propellers of movement and depend upon the knee, any tear, however minor, can cause great damage. Left untreated, these tears can permanently compromise the essential tissues, cartilage, and bones that make movement possible.

Though these kinds of injuries are typically related to sports injuries, workers often tear ligaments through weight-bearing activities such as balancing, bending, or moving. Common causes of ligament injury include:

• Bending one’s knee joint backward
• Twisting or lateral motion
• Sudden hit or contact
• Rapid direction changes
• Landing from jumps
• Deceleration from running
• Force to knee with straight leg

Any work requiring constant stop-and-go motion or slight knee bends may cause ligament tears. Workplace accidents resulting in tears often involve:

• Falls from ladders
• Collapsed scaffolding
• Being hit by falling material
• Constant wear and tear
• Motor vehicle accidents
• Slips on stairs, wet surfaces
• Transferring or loading cargo
• Operation of heavy machinery, equipment

Ligament tears are more common in females and occur with greater frequency with age. As the ligament becomes weaker, tearing becomes more likely and should be addressed immediately.

Ligament tears can have a dramatic impact on your ability to work. Nearly every job requires some degree of walking or bending, however infrequent. A torn ligament can cause debilitating, painful symptoms and severely limit work due to:

• Chronic pain
• Instability, buckling
• Swelling, inflammation
• Joint constantly “giving out”
• Limited knee, leg movements
• Internal bleeding inside knee joint
• Torn cartilage, meniscus, and broken bone
• Risk of greater injury caused by falls, lost balance

Massachusetts workers’ compensation law provides benefits for partial and total disability caused by workplace injury. The state’s no-fault system awards injured workers benefits, regardless of fault.

Partial and temporary total disability benefits include:

• Partial disability
• For reduced earning capacity due to new job, lower wage, fewer hours
• Partial disability of up to 75 percent of the temporary total disability rate
• Entitlement to benefits for maximum of 260 weeks, but extended if injury results in a 75 percent loss of function to any bodily function or sense
• Temporary total disability
• Payment of 60 percent of average weekly wages prior to injury
• 156 week-maximum (3 years); 360 weeks (7 years) for combined partial and total
• Permanent partial disability
• Partial disability extended for permanent lost body function of 75 percent or more
• Lost equilibrium, ability to stand caused by ligament tear
• 520-week maximum with finding; 260 without
• Medical expenses
• Reasonable and necessary treatment
• Prescription medication, mileage, and parking
• Vocational rehabilitation
• Retraining services for required skills to return to suitable job

Depending on their severity, ligament tears may require extensive treatment, rehabilitation, and time off work. The injured worker is entitled to compensation for these costs.

If you have a torn ligament, contact the Massachusetts workers’ compensation attorneys of Kantrovitz & Associates today. For over 20 years, we have provided high quality legal representation to injured workers with ligament tears, helping to get them back on their feet. We recover compensation for disabled workers in communities including Boston, Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Suffolk, Plymouth, and Merrimack Valley. Call 800-367-0871 for a free consultation or contact us online.