Despite how crashes often leave people feeling shaken up, they instinctively know to check themselves and other people for signs of injury. People often move their arms and legs right after a crash and check passengers and children carefully for signs of major injuries. They may then jump to the conclusion that they don’t need medical care, which isn’t always the case.
A broken bone or a spinal cord injury will have obvious symptoms right at the scene of a crash, allowing you to request emergency medical services in a timely fashion. However, some of the most serious injuries that people can suffer in car wrecks don’t produce symptoms right away.
You might overlook one of the two injuries below if you don’t seek proper medical treatment evaluation following a collision.
- Internal bleeding
Whether your seatbelt dug into your stomach or you smashed into the steering wheel because the airbags didn’t go off, you could potentially experience significant internal bleeding that will get worse if you don’t receive proper treatment.
Bleeding in the torso or abdomen could cause serious symptoms and even put pressure on your lungs. People can lose consciousness and require emergency medical care. Internal bleeding in the head can cause worsening symptoms and might lead to someone dying. The faster and more aggressive a car crash was, the more important it becomes to have the people inside the vehicles evaluated for possible brain injuries or other internal injuries.
- Soft tissue injuries
In rear-end collisions or particularly violent crashes, muscles and connective tissue may suffer significant damage and inflammation. Whiplash is a perfect example. In extreme cases, whiplash causes debilitating pain and can leave people unable to work for months.
Sometimes, soft tissue injuries force people to change their careers and create thousands of dollars in medical bills. The way your body responds chemically to the stress of a car crash will delay the signs of soft tissue injuries and will also cover up pain and similar symptoms right after a wreck.
Those who get hurt in a crash frequently have the right to pursue an insurance claim or sometimes even a civil lawsuit. Connecting your medical condition with a recent motor vehicle collision will make it easier for you to get compensation following a wreck.