Approximately 2 million Americans become injured in car accidents across the country every year. Many different injuries can happen in a car accident ranging from relatively minor injuries like bruising to severe traumatic brain injuries. While some common car accident injuries can resolve on their own, others require expensive medical procedures and surgery.
What Are Common Injuries from a Car Accident?
If you or your loved one have experienced a common car accident injury or any type of car accident injury, it’s worth it to discuss your case with an attorney. You may be entitled to compensation for your injuries through a personal injury lawsuit or insurance settlement. Contact the experienced Santa Fe car accident attorneys at Hunt Law today to schedule your free case evaluation.
Scrapes and Cuts
Even in a relatively mild car accident, victims can experience scrapes and cuts. Scrapes or abrasions are wounds involving torn or scraped skin. A cut is a long and narrow incision that can require stitches. Scrapes and cuts may not seem like serious injuries, but they can cause pain and worsen over time if they aren’t treated properly. When a cut or scrape becomes infected, it can become more dangerous.
In car accidents, loose objects can become dangerous when they fly through the air during a collision. Books, laptops, coffee mugs, and cell phones can cause scrapes and cuts that may require stitches. Victims who experienced scrapes and cuts may also have to deal with debris, including glass, which may increase the risk of getting an infection.
Soft Tissue Injuries
Soft tissue injuries happen when the muscles, ligaments, or tendons become injured in a car accident. Along with scrapes and cuts, soft tissue injuries are common in car accidents. One of the most well-known types of soft tissue injuries is whiplash. Fender benders and rear-end collisions can cause a person’s head and neck muscles to move forward quickly and snap back. The muscles and ligaments in the neck and head can become injured. Car accidents can often cause mid or low-back injuries such as muscle sprains, damage to a person’s spinal discs, or the spine itself.
Head Injuries
Head injuries caused by car accidents can be minor, such as a concussion that resolves itself within a few weeks. Head injuries can also be severe, such as traumatic brain injuries (TBI). A driver’s or passenger’s head may collide with the window or the steering wheel, causing deep lacerations, scrapes, and bruising to the head and face.
Researchers are now learning that concussions, which were previously considered mild, can cause long-term symptoms that last over a year. The most serious type of closed head injury is a traumatic brain injury that can cause permanent brain damage and limit a person’s ability to function on his or her own. If you’ve experienced a head injury in a car accident, it’s important that you obtain medical care and keep track of all the symptoms that you continue to experience from your head injury.
Chest Injuries
Chest injuries may require surgery more often than other types of injuries. One of the most common types of chest injuries includes bruised or broken ribs. Broken ribs can be painful and take a long time to heal, but they can also potentially cause a collapsed lung or other damage to internal organs. The force of the car accident can cause a person’s internal organs to become injured or begin bleeding. Drivers are at a higher risk for experiencing a chest injury because of the limited amount of space between their chest and the steering wheel. Even though seat belts protect drivers and passengers, they can also cause painful chest injuries, including severe bruising.
Arm and Leg Injuries
The sudden directional change in a car accident can cause a person’s extremities to involuntarily move, leading to injuries. Scrapes and bruises on arms and legs are the most common injuries to extremities, but victims can also experience fractured bones or even a loss of limb. When the force of the car accident is more than the bones in a person’s arms or legs can withstand, they can suffer a painful break. Broken bones are common in all types of car accidents, including side-impact or rear-end accidents.
Knees and ankles can also become injured in car accidents. The sudden impact of the accident can cause a person’s knee to strike through the dashboard, causing injury to the knee ligaments, or even causing a broken kneecap. Those who experience knee injuries may need surgery, braces, crutches, and ongoing physical therapy to correct the damage. Leg and knee injuries are particularly frustrating because they can cause difficulty walking and could render a person unable to return to work.
Psychological Pain and Mental Illness is One of The Common Injuries in a Car Accident
Car accidents are traumatic and some of the most common car accident injuries include mental health challenges. Victims of car accidents frequently suffer mental and emotional injuries caused by the trauma of the car accident. In a serious car accident in which a person or someone else in the vehicle becomes injured, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may occur. Anxiety, depression, and other mental conditions can make it difficult for a person to get through daily life. The pain and suffering from physical injuries caused by car accidents can also take a toll on victims.
Why You Should Know Common Car Accident Injuries in Santa Fe
If you become injured in a car accident, you do not have to go through the recovery process alone. You may be wondering how you will pay your medical bills, especially if you can’t return to work. Working with an attorney can help you seek the financial compensation you deserve while giving you time to recover from your accident.
Contact a Car Accident Injury Attorney Today
Car accident injuries can be expensive, stressful, and painful. If you or your loved one have become injured in a car accident in Santa Fe, New Mexico, reach out to the experienced personal injury attorneys at Hunt Law today to schedule your free initial consultation.