In 2018, The Association for Safe International Road Travel reported that 20-50 million people around the world suffer non-fatal injuries in car accidents each year, often resulting in long-term disabilities. In the U.S., 4.4 million suffer injuries serious enough to require medical attention.
What happens to our bodies after a car accident?
During a car accident, it’s not uncommon for you to suffer damages and experience injuries. Some of the most common injuries include broken bones, burns, head and neck trauma, brain injuries, and back and spinal cord trauma. However, some of the injuries you suffer after a car accident may go unnoticed without proper medical attention.
Also, you may experience the release of adrenaline during and after your car accident. Adrenaline is a hormone released under sudden stress that prepares the body for a response. An adrenaline rush can be deceptive because it masks the feeling of pain, and you may not realize you’ve sustained an injury until after it’s worn off.
Seeking immediate medical attention after an accident could help you to catch injuries with delayed responses, as well as the following five hidden injuries to look out for after a car accident.
Internal Injuries After A Car Accident
Internal organs can be damaged in a serious car crash. Car accidents can cause internal bleeding and could result in organ failure. Kidney damage and liver lacerations are common internal injuries in a car accident. If these injuries remain untreated, they could cause permanent damage, or be fatal.
Internal bleeding may not appear instantly but it can be life-threatening. That’s why personal injury law professionals suggest that you seek treatment after a car accident. If you feel any pain following an accident, that pain could be associated with your car accident.
Hidden Knee Injuries After A Car Accident
A driver or passenger can be hurled towards the dashboard. This may result in direct impact and trauma to the knee. The trauma experienced may result in injuries like a shattered patella tendon or knee cap, torn meniscus, or patellar chondromalacia.
These injuries may not appear right away. It could take time for more subtle injuries to develop enough inflammation so that they become obvious. Similar hidden knee injuries may occur if a driver slams on the brakes so hard that the knee is unnaturally compressed.
Shoulder Injuries After A Car Accident
The twisting motion of the body during an accident can cause many different injuries to the shoulder. The force from an auto accident directed onto one of your shoulders may cause severe bruising, shoulder strain, and severely torn ligaments.
These types of injuries could require expensive surgical procedures. If you’ve experienced a shoulder injury in a car accident, it’s important to seek treatment. Ignoring a lingering shoulder injury could make it worse.
Traumatic Brain Injuries After A Car Accident
If your head strikes something inside your car during an accident, it could harm your brain. A “traumatic brain injury” (TBI) can cause long-term damage to your brain functions. Unfortunately, traumatic brain injuries may not be obvious right away, and some accident victims have experienced memory loss, mood swings, mania, and depression months later.
It’s especially important to seek medical attention if you’ve suffered a concussion, been knocked unconscious, or experienced headaches because these can be glaring signs of TBIs. A personal injury law professional could help you recover your medical costs and more if you’ve suffered TBI in an accident.
Whiplash Injuries and Car Accidents
Neck strain and whiplash are some of the most common injuries after car accidents. Whiplash is experienced when your head is forced backward, then forth, very fast. Without proper treatment, you could suffer from a neck injury for weeks, months, or even years.