Common Car Crash Injuries

A car crash is every motorist’s worst nightmare. After the shock of the moment passes, most drivers will stop to assess the damage. But while it’s easy to see if a car has a dented fender or a broken windshield, the injuries sustained by the human body can be harder to detect. As there’s a one-in-five chance that someone involved in a car accident will experience some type of injury, it’s important to educate yourself about common car crash injuries and what you can do if you experience them.

Common Car Crash Injuries

For some people, a car crash injury will cause pain and have visible effects right away. For others, it can take days or even weeks to connect a new pain in the neck or back to a car crash. When it comes to your health, knowledge is power. What common car crash injuries should you be aware of?

Whiplash

Whiplash is one of the most common car crash injuries. It is caused by the weight of your head moving rapidly backwards and forwards, which causes your neck to “whip” itself back and forth without support. While the common term for this condition is whiplash, it could also be referred to as neck strain or a neck sprain. It is common for a person experiencing whiplash to not notice immediately due to the shock the body experiences after a car crash. Symptoms of whiplash include stiffness in the neck, headaches, increasing pain in the neck, tingling in the arms, and dizziness and vertigo. Less common symptoms include hearing issues, depression, and memory loss. While whiplash recovery rates are good, this is still a serious condition that can be debilitating without treatment.

Concussion

A concussion occurs when an impact to the head causes your brain to move within your skull. The resulting injury is a concussion. Concussions have a variety of symptoms depending on the severity of the injury, ranging from headaches and nausea to memory issues. While most concussions resolve themselves in a matter of weeks, they can occasionally have lingering effects that are severe. It’s best to have any suspected concussion evaluated by a medical professional right away.

Spinal Cord Injury

A spinal cord injury is also amongst the most common car crash injuries. Your spinal cord is the bundle of nerves inside of your spine that carries nerve impulses back and forth from your brain to the rest of your body. In a car crash, this bundle of nerves can be strained, stretched, or even severed. A spinal cord injury can be detected when patients experience a loss of feeling or mobility in their limbs. These issues can range from some movement difficulties and loss of sensation to a complete loss of mobility and sensation, depending on the severity of the injury. Car crashes are the number one cause of spinal cord injuries in the United States.

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

Car accidents are one of the leading causes of TBI-related visits to emergency rooms. TBI refers to direct injuries to your brain caused by a traumatic impact. They are similar to a concussion, but can be much more severe. Signs of a TBI can include a loss of consciousness or period of disorientation. This is followed by symptoms ranging from dizziness and vertigo in addition to speech issues, fatigue, and memory loss. However, unlike the symptoms of concussion and whiplash, the effects of TBIs will not go away on their own. TBIs are serious injuries, and allowing them to go untreated can contribute to ongoing debilitating issues and even death. If you have a TBI, you need to seek medical attention right away.

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Above all, it’s important to promptly take care of any injury you may have sustained from a car crash. If you suspect that you’re suffering from any of these injuries, don’t wait. Seek medical attention immediately. A qualified medical professional will be able to evaluate your health and ensure you get the care you need.

Need help right away? Contact National Dizzy and Balance Center. We specialize in diagnosing and treating common car crash injuries. To learn more about our approach, please contact us online or by phone to schedule your free medical consultation.