Kentucky Internal Injury Lawyer

What used to be your fairly predictable life may have been turned upside down in an instant. Now you need to be treated for your injuries, which may involve surgery and extensive rehabilitation, in order to get your life back.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a vehicle accident, the type and extent of your injuries depends on a wide number of factors. Whether there are injuries, and if so, how serious they are, can depend on the speed and size of the vehicles, the angle of impact, whether you and your passengers were using seatbelts and whether, after the first impact, your vehicle hit another vehicle or object.

According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

• Americans are hospitalized for more than one million days annually due to vehicle accidents.
• Injuries from vehicle accidents in 2012 cost a total of $18 billion in lifetime medical costs. More than three-quarters of those costs occur during the first 18 months after the accident.
• The estimated value of the total lifetime work lost because of 2012 crash injuries is about $33 billion.
• More than 2.5 million Americans sought treatment at emergency departments, and almost 200,000 were hospitalized due to crash injuries in 2012.
• The average crash-related emergency department visit costs about $3,300, and each hospitalization costs about $57,000 over a person’s lifetime.

Vehicle accident internal injuries may have several causes:

• Impact injuries caused by the person’s body hitting a part of the interior of the car
• Penetrating injuries are typically cuts and scrapes but could also be caused by an object or the other vehicle intruding into the passenger compartment.
• The force on the body due to the vehicle’s rapid deceleration.

Internal bleeding is one of the most serious consequences of trauma due to a vehicle accident. The bleeding may be caused by obvious injuries that require quick medical attention or by less severe or obvious trauma where bleeding can be delayed by hours or days. Internal bleeding may stop on its own, but if it continues or is severe, surgery is needed to correct it.

Due to the impact of the accident, blood vessels can be torn or crushed either by force on the body or a blunt object. If a foreign object penetrates the body, it can strike organs and tear one or more blood vessels. Almost any organ or blood vessel can be injured due to the trauma of an accident, causing internal bleeding.

The more serious types of internal bleeding include:

• Around the lungs (hemothorax)
• Around the heart (hemopericardium and cardiac tamponade)
• Tears in the large blood vessels near the center of the body (aorta, superior and inferior vena cava and their major branches)
• Injuries to the abdomen, such as liver or spleen lacerations or perforation of other organs.

Chest injuries are also common result in vehicle accidents:

• Contusions or bruises can include broken ribs or internal injuries such as a collapsed lung.
• Chest injuries happen because the driver sits in front of the steering wheel, which allows for little movement before the chest collides with the steering wheel or into an air bag.
• Even without an impact into a steering wheel or dashboard, the chest can still experience a high level of force against the shoulder harness or seat belt.

The trauma of a vehicle accident can cause fluid (and often air) to leak into the lungs, which can also be punctured by broken ribs. Lungs normally inflate and deflate, providing oxygen to the body. If a lung collapses, it stops functioning and that lack of oxygen can impact the entire body.

Other internal injuries can be to the small intestine, liver, kidney and colon.

They can be caused by deceleration or contusion, which is frequently caused by the seatbelt’s force on the body. Liver injuries, if severe enough, can be a major abdominal cause of death. They are often sustained due to the crushing impact of the accident. Hip fractures are possible after a front-end vehicle accident. The force of the accident can push a leg up to the hip and break it near the pelvis.

If an internal injury is the result of a vehicle accident, you need prompt, proper medical treatment in order to fully recover as quickly as possible. We help our clients obtain the right treatment by qualified professionals who are experienced with treating victims of vehicle accidents.

If you or a loved one has been involved in a vehicle accident of any type and you were not at fault, you need to know your rights and seek legal protection. You can bet the insurance company knows what to do to keep you from getting fair compensation. We can help. Call Julie Butcher, the Lexington, KY Vehicle Accident Lawyer at 859-233-3641 or fill out our online contact form for a free consultation.