What Are The Most Common Car Accident Injuries?

If you are injured in a car accident, our lawyers can help gather the needed evidence to receive compensation for your medical expenses and other damages you sustain due to the injury. We have offices across the state (Denver, Aurora, Colorado Springs, Englewood, Fort Collins) and in Cheyenne, WY. 

Car accident injuries are typically put into two categories — impact and penetrating injuries. Impact injuries are those that occur when the body hits the interior of the car. For instance, when the head hits the seat/side glass, the face hits the dashboard, or the knee hits the dashboard.

On the other hand, penetrating injuries are those that occur when a part of the vehicle or a loose flying object strikes you. For example, when you are cut by a broken glass.

Both impact and penetrating injuries can result in minor or severe injuries. Hitting the interior of a car may cause you to have a sprained wrist or a traumatic brain injury (TBI). You may only sustain a minor cut from a broken glass; however, a sharp flying object may find itself deep in your body.

Regardless of the perceived severity of your injuries, it’s crucial to get immediate medical help. Only after a medical examination can you tell if you sustained a minor or serious injury. An injury may appear minor, yet it’s life-threatening. Besides, some injuries may not even have visible symptoms that can be spotted — a good example is internal bleeding.

After performing the needed tests, your doctor will diagnose and offer immediate treatment. You may be diagnosed with these typical car accident injuries:

Whiplash

A car accident can throw and jerk the head and neck in unnatural ways. Even accidents at low speeds can cause the neck muscles to stretch and strain. The common name for injured muscles, tendons, and ligaments in the head and neck area is called whiplash. Whiplash is extremely common in the case of rear-end collisions.

Although it can be reported in any car accident, whiplash is mostly seen in individuals involved in rear-end accidents because the impact in this type of accident causes the vehicle to be uncontrollably moved forward while its occupants remain stationary in their seats, resulting in the back-and-forth motion of the head and neck.

Common symptoms of whiplash include neck pain and stiffness, pain that worsens when you move your neck, dizziness, headaches that typically start from the base of the skull, shoulder pain, tingling/numbness in the arms, loss of range of motion in the neck, and tingling. 

Scrapes And Cuts

Scrapes and cuts occur in many ways in an accident. Many car accidents involve broken glass. Even tiny pieces of glass can cause a great deal of damage. Trauma from impact can also cause scrapes and cuts. For example, the impact of airbag deployment can cause abrasions on the head and chest. Abrasions are types of scrapes and cuts caused by friction, infection, loss of mobility, and blood loss. 

Infection, loss of mobility, and blood loss can all be significant concerns when scrapes and cuts occur in a car accident. Minor scrapes and cuts can be treated by basic first aid and non-prescription drugs, but serious lacerations may need stitches.

Concussion And Traumatic Brain Injury

The brain isn’t made to withstand sudden force. A brain injury is any sudden jarring of the brain. Even without a skull injury, an internal brain injury can be a severe injury with potentially lifelong consequences. If there are any signs of brain trauma, it’s essential to follow your medical care plan to treat your injuries fully.

Examples of symptoms you may experience due to traumatic brain injuries after a car accident are dizziness, severe headache, nausea/vomiting, fatigue, confusion, slowed thinking, difficulty concentrating, blurred or double vision, and difficulty sleeping. Some of these symptoms may appear immediately, but others may take days or longer.

Broken Ribs

Ribs are a common car accident injury because the ribs are fragile. If you suffer a rib injury, it can cause significant pain and difficulty breathing. Sometimes, car accident victims overlook broken ribs as just aches and pains. It’s important to be aware that broken ribs are a possibility in a car accident.

Broken ribs are, in most cases, caused by blunt force trauma to the chest. This can happen when the chest hits the steering wheel or dashboard when airbags fail to deploy. The force of airbag inflation combined with the impact of an accident can also cause broken ribs. Another cause is the force of a seatbelt compressing the chest.

Broken And Dislocated Hips

The sudden trauma of a car accident can break or dislocate the hip. A broken or dislocated hip can mean a long, slow recovery. There are often multiple surgeries involved. If you have a hip injury in a car accident, it’s important to remember the long recovery periods associated with the injury as you calculate your pain and suffering damages.

Examples of the most common hip injuries reported after a car accident are a hip fracture (the hip bone breaks), hip dislocation (the head of the femur moves out of the hip socket), hip labral tear (an injury to the labrum, which is a ring of cartilage on the socket part of the hip joint), and hip bursitis (inflammation or irritation of one or more of the bursae, which are fluid-filled sacs that cushion the hip joint). 

Hip injuries can be painful and limit your movement.

Bruises/Internal Bleeding

When bleeding happens internally within the body, it’s called bruising. Internal bleeding can be serious. It’s important to seek emergency medical attention when you have any car accident injuries because you may not be aware of a potentially serious injury like internal bleeding. It’s critical to seek emergency care to determine the full extent of your injuries.

Although it mostly has delayed symptoms, you should be concerned if, after a crash, you experience abdominal pain or tenderness, weakness, dizziness, cold sweat, nausea or vomiting, vision problems, headache, and a fast heartbeat. You may be bleeding internally.

Bruising can be life-threatening. You need immediate medical treatment.

Herniated Discs And Spine Injuries

The stress and force of a car accident can cause the spine to shift suddenly. A herniated disc is a very painful injury. Nerve pain, numbness, and tingling can all be problems associated with spinal injuries in a car accident.

A doctor should examine you to determine if you have sustained this type of injury. Treatment of any type of spinal cord injury can range from medications to surgery. Delaying treatment can worsen your condition — you may potentially suffer nerve damage and other serious conditions.

Knee Trauma

There are a lot of different ways that a knee can sustain an injury in a car accident. You may have torn your ACL or MCL. Knee dislocations are another type of common car accident injury. Knee injuries often require surgery. They cause pain and mobility limitations.

If you feel pain in your knee and can’t move after a car accident, chances are you have sustained a knee injury. Unfortunately, knee injuries also have delayed symptoms. You may not feel pain at the accident scene and may even be able to move around, yet you may have sprained a knee ligament. You may only notice symptoms days or weeks later after the accident.

PTSD/Flashbacks

A car accident can cause mental injuries just like it can cause physical injuries. When you’re involved in a traumatic event, it’s common to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder or flashbacks of the incident. It’s important to treat your mental injuries with the appropriate medical care and attention, just as you would treat physical trauma in a car accident.

Psychologically, re-experiencing the accident can negatively impact your mental health and other aspects of your life. You may have difficulty sleeping or interacting with others. You may even actively force yourself not to remember the accident, which can be stressful. You need medical care and emotional support when going through this.

Anxiety And Depression

Car accident victims often suffer from anxiety and depression. It can be hard to return to driving a car. You may feel depressed over the change in lifestyle that comes with your physical injuries. Mental injuries are very real, serious injuries that can occur in a car accident.

Since they don’t have physical symptoms, anxiety and depression can be overlooked by individuals filing a car accident claim. You need to include them to receive a settlement that will allow you to improve your mental well-being.

What Are My Rights If I’m Injured In A Car Accident In Colorado?

If you’re injured in a car accident in Colorado, you may have the right to receive financial compensation. Colorado is an at-fault state for car accidents. This means that no matter how minor or severe your accident injuries are, you can bring a claim against the responsible driver for damages. If the accident is someone else’s fault, you may seek financial compensation from them or their insurance company. However, you will have to investigate factors, such as the location of accident damage, to determine fault.

At the time of your injury, you may not know who is to blame for the car accident. You may only know that you have injuries, financial losses, and emotional anguish. Making a report to the police after a car accident is the best place to start. Our Colorado car accident attorneys can help you investigate your case, determine the value of your claim, and ensure you meet Colorado’s statute of limitations.

We will help you document your medical records to prove the accident directly caused your injuries and that you incurred medical bills as a result. Accordingly, the other driver or their insurer should cover you.

Note that you may make mistakes that can threaten your rights when injured in a car accident. These include failing to get immediate medical attention, not following your doctor’s instructions, talking to the other driver’s insurer without your attorney, discussing the accident with the other driver, not gathering enough evidence, and failing to report the accident to the police. Our lawyers will help you avoid these and more mistakes.

How Can A Colorado Car Accident Attorney Help Me?

If you’re hurt in an accident, a Colorado auto accident law firm can help you evaluate your likelihood of financial recovery, the value of your case, and what steps are necessary for you to receive compensation. You may also need a lawyer’s help with special circumstances, like if you have been in a crash in a company car, an Uber or Lyft car crash, or an accident in a leased vehicle.

Armed with information from experienced attorneys, you can make an informed choice about how to proceed with your claim. If you pursue your claim, your attorneys take all of the necessary steps on your behalf to win you the compensation that you deserve. 

For instance, they will handle negotiations with the other driver or their insurance company. They will present in-depth details about your damages and stand their ground until the other side offers a fair settlement. This way, you can have a smooth experience when fighting for your rights.

Why Choose Our Colorado Car Accident Lawyers?

When you work with the attorneys at Bachus & Schanker, you’re working with a team of trained and experienced legal professionals. Our attorneys don’t stop fighting until you have the compensation for your car accident injuries. Justice isn’t just our life’s work; it’s our passion.

We know that a car accident is a stressful, traumatic experience. We want to take the pressure off of you and help you in the best way possible. Don’t assume that you can’t win your case. 

Our attorneys can create a legal plan and advocate for you until you get the compensation you deserve. There’s no cost to speak with our team, so you have nothing to lose. We will help you understand your case and determine the best way to fight for what you deserve. You don’t have to go through complicated steps to get the needed help.

We are conveniently located near you in Denver, Fort Collins, Colorado Springs, Aurora, Englewood, and throughout the state, as well as in Cheyenne, WY. Our attorneys are ready to serve you and fight for the compensation you deserve.

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