ABA Medical-Legal Guides: The Spine for Lawyers

by Samuel D. Hodge, Jack E. Hubbard

Overview

Injuries involving the spine are the most common compensation claims in the United States. Statistically, problems with the lower back are the second leading cause of missed time from work and one of the leading reasons people visit orthopedic and neurosurgeons. And sprains and strains of the neck are the most frequently reported problem made to insurance companies. Eighty percent of people will suffer from back pain during their lifetime that is unrelated to trauma, and multiple studies demonstrate that these injuries often resolve themselves within three months of the incident it is not hard to understand why injuries to the spine are so controversial and turn on questions of credibility. The problem, however, is much more complicated. No diagnostic test can verify a soft tissue injury, nor can it show a picture of pain. While an MRI can demonstrate a herniated disc and other structural abnormalities, it is difficult to age" the finding, and relating it to an incident of trauma is a matter of opinion and not fact.

The Spine for Lawyers is designed to help practitioners, judges and insurance professionals understand the multifaceted medical and legal issues in a claim involving this part of the human anatomy. This book is divided into three thorough segments and covers:

• An Overview of Anatomy
• The Skeletal System
• The Muscular Systems
• The Nervous System

• The Back
• The Neck
• Spinal Cord Injuries
• Diagnostic Imaging of the Back
• Pain
• Myofascial Pain and Trigger Points
• Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
• Waddell's Signs

• The Orthopedic Medical Examination
• The Orthopedic Doctor as Expert Witness
• How to Understand Medical Records
• The Physician as Expert Witness

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781627221092
Publisher:	American Bar Association
Publication date:	04/07/2014
Series:	ABA Medical-Legal Guides Series
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	800
Sales rank:	755,534
Product dimensions:	8.70(w) x 11.00(h) x 1.60(d)

About the Author

Samuel D. Hodge, Jr.  is a professor at Temple Universitywhere he teaches both law and anatomy.  He is also a seasoned litigator who enjoys an AV Preeminent rating and has been named a top lawyer in Pennsylvania on multiple occasions and a top Insurance Defense Attorney in the United States. Sam is one of the most popular continuing legal education instructors in the country, teaching frequently to attorneys, judges, physicians and governmental agencies on medical/legal topics.  He has received multiple teaching awards for his entertaining teaching style including being named a Temple UniversityGreat Teacher, and his Anatomy for Lawyers course was the recipient of the ACLEA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Continuing Legal Education. Sam’s interactive teaching style is so unique that it has received national media attention including stories in The New York Times, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Philadelphia Inquirer, National Public Radio and television.

Professor Hodge is also a prolific author whose research is cited in court opinions, legislation, law reviews and legal or medical journals. Professor Hodge has authored more than 160 articles and 8 books. These include: Head Trauma and Brain Injuries for Lawyers, ABA (2016), Law in American Society, McGraw Hill (2015); The Spine, ABA (2015), The Forensic Autopsy, ABA (2014); The Legal Environment of Business, McGraw Hill (2013)  Clinical Anatomy for Attorneys, ABA (2012); and the award winning book, Anatomy for Litigators, ALI ABA (2007).  Mr. Hodge is a graduate of Temple UniversitySchool of Law and the Graduate Division of the Law School. He is a member of the American Association of Anatomists and the American College of Legal Medicine.

Jack E. Hubbard, MD, PhD is a board certified neurologist who is also board certified in pain medicine.  He received his PhD in anatomy and neurosciences from Loyola University, Chicago; taught at the Universityof Louisville School of Medicine, Department of Anatomy; and graduated from the Universityof Louisville School of Medicine with an MD degree.  He subsequently completed a residency in neurology at the Universityof Minnesota School of Medicine.  He has had thirty-three years of clinical experience as a staff neurologist with the Minneapolis Clinic of Neurology and taught as Adjunct Professor of Neurology at the Universityof Minnesota School of Medicine.  He is currently retired from both his clinical and teaching responsibilities but continues to serve as a consultant in medical-legal matters.  He is licensed in both Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Dr. Hubbard has authored numerous papers in the medical and legal literature pertaining to various issues, particularly those having to do with painful conditions as well as brain trauma.  In addition,  with Samuel Hodge he has co-authored a series of medical-legal texts related to clinical anatomy, the spine, and head trauma/brain injury.  He is a member of the American Academy of Neurology, American Pain Society, and the American Headache Society.