Car accidents range in severity from minor to deadly. Although car designers and manufacturers work diligently with state and federal governments to take measures to protect passengers, under any car crash circumstances, someone can get hurt.
Some of the most common types of injuries seen in car accidents are contusions and lacerations. Also referred to as cuts and bruises, they may not be as minor as they seem.
Each type of injury may be just the beginning of a more complicated — and potentially even life-threatening — injury.
If you were affected by cuts and bruises due to a crash and faced a more severe medical diagnosis than was expected, know that we are here to help you. The Personal Injury Lawyers™ is a local law firm in Chicago that has helped thousands in the area find the compensation their case deserves.
Call to schedule a free initial case review with an experienced Chicago car wreck attorney who can help you file a claim for your medical treatment costs and other damages when you call (312) 999-9990 or contact us online.
How a Chicago Contusions and Lacerations Attorney Can Help You Claim Medical Expenses
Injuries are extremely likely during any car accident. Even if no one hits any part of the cabin, the sheer force of impact is enough to send personal effects and debris flying right into passengers.
In addition, passengers are more than likely going to be bruised by their restraints. Seat belts prevent occupants from being ejected from their vehicle, likely saving their lives, but the force of being held into one’s seat is still enough to cause injuries by itself.
Although contusions and lacerations are expected in severe crashes, they should still be considered worthy of professional medical evaluation. While these injuries are often minor, they come with some consequences — and possible severe medical complications.
A car accident injury claim against an at-fault can help pay for the costs of treating contusions and lacerations, helping the injury victim avoid serious complications without forcing them to pay out-of-pocket.
When you work with an experienced personal injury attorney, you know your claim will be in good hands. Your attorney will work hard to ensure that all evidence is reviewed and applied to your claim, that they handle all negotiations between parties, and that your case can stand up before a judge and jury if it goes all the way to court.
A car accident contusions and lacerations attorney knows the ins and outs of Illinois law, how to review and apply evidence to your case, calculate medical bills and lost wages, and build a strong case that gives you a high chance of receiving the compensation you need to fully heal and move on for your crash.
How Do Contusions and Lacerations Affect Victims?
When one thinks of cuts and bruises, the assumption is that these are injuries that will likely involve a swift and easy recovery. However, in some cases, that assumption can be far from the truth.
Contusions and lacerations sometimes are the beginning of a more severe injury that can become life-threatening.
Contusions
The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons states that muscle contusions happen when a blunt object strikes a victim’s body. Also referred to as bruising, contusions are often caused by items that go airborne during the crash.
They also may be caused by a seatbelt and the impact of the victims hitting parts of the inside of their car.
The symptoms of contusions may seem ordinary, but bruises can become dangerous, depending on where on the body they occur. Sometimes, when a pool of blood collects in damaged tissue, it creates a lump under the skin called a hematoma.
Bruising also accompanies other severe medical conditions like broken bones, sprains, damaged muscles, organ damage, and other injuries. In other words, a seemingly minor bruise could be just the first symptom of a much more concerning condition.
Doctors will typically evaluate and perform a diagnostic for contusions, primarily when they are located in the abdomen or show evidence of a more complicated medical injury. Doctors may choose to perform scans like X-rays, CT scans, or MRIs before arriving at a full diagnosis.
Lacerations
OrthoInfo describes a laceration as a deep cut that goes entirely through skin layers in an irregular or jagged shape. When victims come to the emergency room with lacerations, they are usually caused by a wound from any flying debris or from the victim’s body hitting a part of their car.
Lacerations are typically treated with stitches to close the wound and covered in a sterile dressing, as deemed appropriate by medical staff. Most victims heal from lacerations well, with some minor yet visible scarring where they endured the injury.
However, some lacerations are dangerous because they make it easy for bacteria to enter the body, creating the perfect environment for infection and a complicated medical situation. As a result, victims will spend more time in the hospital, undergo surgery, acquire larger medical bills, and take more time off work to heal from their injuries.
Should I Go to a Hospital if I Only Have Cuts and Bruises After My Crash?
No matter the type of injury one endures in a car accident, victims should seek medical attention right away. Without a medical evaluation, it will be impossible to know an exact diagnosis and treatment plan, potentially making an already dangerous situation worse.
A doctor can evaluate the injuries you have suffered from, determine an appropriate treatment plan, provide you with the needed bandages and care instructions, and monitor for any complications.
In addition, the diagnostic capabilities of a medical care facility can be invaluable for investigating your condition further. Imaging tools like CT scans, MRIs, and X-rays will help medical staff determine if a more complicated matter is at hand.
Complications From Lacerations and Contusions
Like many injuries, lacerations and contusions come with their own unique potential medical complications.
Although complications do not happen in every medical case, when they occur, they may require additional surgeries, extensive sterilization and disinfection procedures, and possible hospitalizations. Victims could face additional scarring and disfigurement as a result.
Some examples of medical complications with lacerations are:
- Allergic reaction to anesthesia
- Bleeding
- Infection
- Noticeable scarring
- Poor wound closure
Some examples of medical complications with contusions are:
- Acute compartment syndrome
- Bleeding
- Large hematomas
- Myositis ossificans
An Allergic Reaction to Anesthesia
If a laceration or contusion requires anesthesia to repair, there is always the risk that the patient may have adverse effects when injected with the medication. Although medical staff works diligently to prevent allergic reactions through learning about medical and family history, there is always the risk that the victim will have some sort of allergic reaction.
Symptoms of reactions to anesthesia can include:
- Dizziness
- A runny nose
- A skin rash
- Feeling strange
- Random hives
- Having difficulty breathing
- Rapid heartbeat
Poor Wound Closure
Victims and medical teams expect wounds to close properly, no matter their size or shape. However, full closure doesn’t always happen, creating the need for more medical visits and additional treatments.
Victims will also require more time off work or limit their mobility to ensure proper healing.
Wound healing is a normal and natural human biological process divided into four stages: hematostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and tissue remodeling. Initial injuries begin to clot through a natural process in the human body before beginning to reconstruct the damaged tissue. Some bodily pre-existing factors may impact a victim’s ability to properly close their wounds naturally, including:
- Diabetes
- Malnutrition
- Obesity
- Stress
- Tobacco use
Although these factors are not all a result of the accident, they may cause delayed healing for victims.
Acute Compartment Syndrome
The increased pressure of the injured area may cause restricted blood flow and create a medical condition called acute compartment syndrome. If this condition is left untreated, it may cause necrosis — or the death of body tissue.
Once necrosis is established in the tissue, it is not reversible and will become gangrene, likely leading to the need to amputate the affected limb.
The consequences of this type of medical complication will severely impact one’s quality of life, daily routines, and independence. Medical staff works diligently to prevent this condition from forming, but in some cases, it still happens.
The risk of a condition is why receiving a professional’s evaluation and a recommended treatment plan is always so important.
Large Hematomas
In a hematoma, blood collects outside the larger blood vessels into the surrounding tissue, causing discoloration, inflammation, redness, and warm skin. Hematomas can happen in any part of the body, with some being more risky than others.
For example, a victim who takes a blow to the head may have a hematoma or blood pooling in their skull. The hematoma can cause serious medical complications, including producing intense pressure against the brain.
Victims face a lot of pain in the areas where they have hematomas and sometimes require treatment for the blood to be reabsorbed into the surrounding tissues. What concerns medical staff about hematomas is that they often look like a bruise (contusion), and doctors must be able to tell them apart.
With the right circumstances, large hematomas can cause blood pressure in the body to drop. Leading victims to shock if their organs are not receiving enough blood or oxygen to function correctly.
Myositis Ossificans
Calcium can collect under a bruise after an injury. It can also create a bone-like structure that is felt when touched over the skin.
Victims will feel hardness beneath the skin and a significant amount of pain in the area. This medical complication is typically seen in larger muscles like the quadriceps and upper arms.
Victims will need to seek additional physical therapy to ensure the retention of mobility in the affected area. They must add routine icing, stretching, and compression to the area for treatment.
The worst cases require surgery to correct.
Chicago Contusions and Lacerations Law Firm
In the event of a severe car accident, lacerations and contusions are expected. But, although they are common and happen to a lot of victims, they pose their own complications, which can create more medical bills, lost working hours, and the need to endure life-long disabilities and disfigurement.
If you were affected by a contusion or laceration gone wrong, give the Personal Injury Lawyers a call. Our team of legal staff is here to help you explore all options for holding others liable after your accident.
Schedule a free case review with our experienced Chicago car crash attorney team when you call (312) 999-9990 or contact us online.
