What Are Some Typical Car Accident Injuries You Can Seek Compensation for In Florida?

Car accidents injuries vary as widely as the specific circumstances that cause them.

Although scrapes and cuts commonly result from items being strewn about the car amidst a collision, other injuries—from moderate, to severe, and even fatal—present themselves with alarming frequency.

Some of these more serious injuries might not be immediately apparent to the accident victim, making it extremely important that he or she seek medical attention as soon as possible following the collision. To delay a medical assessment only delays treatment if there is a problem that needs attention.

Following is a snapshot of the most common car accident injuries you can seek compensation for in Florida that fall outside the realm of the benign cut or scrape.

Head Injuries

Scrapes and lacerations can result from a head’s slamming into a steering wheel or window. These are called open-head injuries and are readily treated with antiseptics and/or stitches, in some cases. More troublesome, the sheer force of an automobile collision can create vast possibilities for blunt force trauma. These closed-head injuries can manifest as concussions or, in the worst cases, brain damage.

Bone Fractures

Broken and fractured bones rank as the most common car accident injury. Fingers or wrists can break when bracing for impact. Legs, which have little room to move, can buckle and break upon impact. The sheer force of the impact could even yield a broken back. The most common types of breaks in a car accident include:

• Avulsion – breakage of a small bit of bone
• Buckled – two bones displace after smashing together
• Closed/Simple – bones break with no rupturing of skin
• Displaced – bone misaligns after a break
• Greenstick – bending of the bone that leads to a break
• Non-Displaced – incomplete break that maintains proper alignment
• Open/Compound – fractured bone pierces skin
• Pathologic – break happens in bone weakened from disease
• Stress – hairline breaks
• Transverse –run perpendicular to the bone, resulting from a single trauma

Back Injuries

With all the muscles, bones, tendons, tissues, and ligaments that comprise the back, there are plenty of combinations of injuries that can arise from the impact of a car collision. Back injuries can change a person’s life with decreased mobility and ongoing pain. The most common car-accident-related back injuries are:

• Back Sprains – Damage to ligaments
• Back Strains – Damage to muscles
• Compression Fractures – small cracks or breaks in the spine; can be very painful making it hard to breathe
• Herniated Discs– excessive pressure on the vertebrae’s discs causing them to rupture; creates weakness and numbness
• Lumbar fractures– either extension fractures, where bones pull apart; or rotation fractures, where bones bend then break

Neck Injuries

These injuries are rather good at cloaking themselves in the swirl of endorphins and adrenaline that accompanies the shock of a car accident. Be sure to tell your doctor about any unusual headaches, numbness, neck pain, or spasms. Common car accident neck injuries include the following:

• any combination of neck sprain and/or neck sprain caused by the head being suddenly thrust backward then forward
• the result of ligaments being stretched or torn, causing stiffness
• the result of muscles being stretched or torn

also known as slipped discs or ruptured discs, resulting from a neck motion that places extra pressure on a spinal disc; creates numbness and pain

Chest Injuries

If you experience chest pain after your car accident, you might have a serious injury. More important to remember is that you could have a severe injury and feel no pain whatsoever. Going to a medical professional following your accident is the best way to evaluate any injuries that need to be treated with urgency. The most common chest injuries resulting from a car accident are as follows:

Bruised Sternum or Ribs – accompanied by aching pains that elevate with movement

Fractured Ribs – manifesting with sharp, shooting pain, often the byproduct of seatbelt restraint or colliding with steering wheel

Internal Organ Injuries–possible damage to the heart or lungs, most often from penetration, or sometimes a heart attack

Muscle Strain – symptoms of aching, dull pain; sometimes can be indicative of a more threatening injury

You Can Trust Us to Help You Get Compensation for Your Car Accident Injuries

Whatever your symptoms, seek prompt medical attention after a car accident. You will embark on the road to recovery sooner. Furthermore, the doctor’s documentation can prove to be valuable evidence that links your injuries to the accident, should you pursue legal action against the negligent driver. You should not have to pay medical bills for an accident that was not your fault. Call Chalik&Chalik Injury Lawyers today for a free consultation and to find out more information about typical car accident injuries you can seek compensation for in Florida at 954-476-1000.