When you get into a car accident the most common reaction is to check and see if you’re hurt. Most people are so full of adrenaline they think they are fine and have no injuries. But, experience symptoms days later. There are some fairly common car accident injuries. Many injures are minor, but others are much more serious.
Neck and Back Injuries
Soft tissue damage to the neck and back, often called whiplash, is one of the most common car accident injuries. This injury can be as mild as some slight stiffness in the days after an accident to more serious soft tissue damage that lingers for weeks, months, or even years.
In addition to whiplash, the vertebrae of the backbone can become misaligned and rupture the discs between the vertebrae. The vertebrae can also become fractured. These car accident injuries often require one or more surgeries and can impact people for the rest of their lives.
The most serious type of back and neck injury is a spinal cord injury. The spinal cord can be damaged from the trauma and torque of the spinal column during a car accident, especially ones at high speed. Damage to the spinal cord can result in permanent partial or total paralysis. Even in milder cases where there is no paralysis, the pain is excruciating.
Brain Injuries
The skull is designed to protect the brain. But, when the head is hit or moved abruptly, the brain slams against the inside of the skull. This can cause concussions, or even more serious brain injuries. Because in most car accidents your body comes to an abrupt stop, even people wearing seat belts can suffer from brain injuries.
The effects of the brain injury can be permanent and debilitating. Even in a case of a mild concussion, the effects may be long lasting.
Abdominal Injuries
The most common abdominal injury in a car accident is bruising from a seat belt. However, more serious injuries often occur, especially in side impact and frontal impact car crashes. Injuries to the liver, spleen, and kidneys can be dangerous if not treated immediately. People with injuries to these vital organs may also have extensive internal bleeding.
Face Injuries
Cuts and bruises as a result of broken glass, air bag deployment, or debris make up the bulk of facial injuries in car accidents. Other more serious car accident injuries include damage to the eyes from broken glass or debris. Eye injuries may leave someone temporarily or permanently blind. In some cases the eye itself may have to be removed.
Jaw injures are also common. Injuries to the jaw can be caused from direct trauma to the jawbones or by the stress of someone clenching their jaw during the car accident.
While superficial facial injures will heal on their own and often wont leave any scars, more serious injuries such as those to the eyes and jaw usually require surgery and extensive recovery times.
Mental and Emotional Injuries
Beyond just physical injures, and the mental and emotional injures car accident victims have to deal with. Mental and emotional injuries result from the experience of the car accident itself, or as a result of the physical injuries suffered in a car accident.
People can develop anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of a car accident.
If you or someone you know has been hurt in a car accident it is important that they seek medical attention as soon as possible. Consult a lawyer if you have questions about your legal rights.
