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Auto Accident Injury

Auto accidents can be serious as we all know, the most common injury is Whiplash however, there can be much more serious injuries occur.

Some of these are listed below:

  • Traumatic Brain Injury – this occurs when the external force of a car accident traumatizes the brain. Skull fracture, brain-bruising(hematoma) and nerve damage are often related to this kind of injury. Permanent brain damage is a possibility. Brain injuries are more common when the impact of a car accident is from the side as opposed to a rear end impact. These injuries are often diagnosed by CT or MRI scanning. Concussion can also be as a result of brain injury along with seizures, dizziness, memory loss, depression, anxiety and headaches.
  • Internal Organ injury – Most commonly the internal injuries include broken ribs, punctured lung, kidney damage, liver damage, spleen damage and heart injury. These are all determined by CT, MRI or Xray
  • Back Injury – The most commonly affected or damaged discs in an auto accident are the cervical discs in the neck however, other damage is possible and can include mid-back, thoracic, lumbar and lower back. Compression fracture is also a risk from this kind of accident. If there is spinal injury the patient will experience numbness, tingling, weakness of the arms or legs, difficulty in breathing and abnormal bladder or bowel control. Surgery may be necessary to treat these kinds of disc injury.
  • Injury to the hands, fingers and feet – these are also very common in auto accidents and fractures are often diagnosed resulting in the need for splints and casts and occasionally surgery to repair. Another common injury to the upper body is the rotator cuff in the shoulder, this often tears however a medical practitioner may not order an MRI due to the cost of it and may wait until physical therapy has been completed to do further investigation. In the lower part of the body, there can be ankle sprains, breaks and damage to the achilles tendon, stress fracture and ligament injury. More serious injury can include fracture of the femure, pelvis, tibia and patella. Sometimes these will require surgery.
  • Injury to the joint and ligaments - these allow the jaw to move is also possible in an auto accident – this is known as the TMJ or Temporalmandibular joint and will affect the eating, drinking and speaking of the patient. TMJ injury can be through direct or indirect impact to the jaw.

As with any accident it is MOST important that you assess the patient and do not attempt to move them until you can be certain that they do not have an injury, such as of the back or neck, that will cause further, irreversible damage if they are moved. Always ensure that you have a blanket on hand to cover the patient as they will more than likely go into shock and this alone can be fatal. If your patient is unconscious you should put them into the recover position and ensure that their airways are clear. Await the arrival of medical aid whilst ensuring the patient is breathing and not bleeding profusely from anywhere on their body.

It is a good idea to travel with a first aid kit in your car and, if possible, get yourself trained in First Aide so that should you come across an auto accident, you can assist properly.

The Brooks Clinic specializes in treating whiplash injuries. We are located in Midtown, downtown, Oklahoma City. Call us today and we’ll give you a free consultation with absolutely no strings attached.

Call Us at 1-405-943-0303