If you are involved in a motor vehicle accident, there is a risk that you could suffer a catastrophic injury. These injuries could lead to a significant disability that lasts a lifetime.
Catastrophic injuries are serious injuries that affect major parts of the body, such as:
- Brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Burn injuries
Each of these kinds of injuries can leave you with lifelong changes to your body and life. Here is what you should know about them.
Brain injuries
The first type of catastrophic injury that could occur in a car accident is a brain injury. Brain injuries may result in long-lasting effects that could impair your ability to do your normal daily activities. Open or closed injuries can occur, and the severity of the symptoms are based on how the injury was caused, the severity of the swelling of the brain and any damage that results.
Spinal cord injuries
When the spinal cord is injured in an accident, there can be devastating consequences. The nerve signals from the brain may no longer reach certain parts of the body or may be hindered, so there could be muscle weakness, paralysis, pain or other symptoms as a result. Unfortunately, many spinal cord injuries are permanent with little chance of recovery.
Burn injuries
Burn injuries may lead to disfiguring scars and lasting pain. Sometimes, these injuries affect the muscles, tissues and organs in the body as well. Serious burns may lead to respiratory problems, emotional trauma, disfigurement and other issues that a victim will have to live with for the long term.
If you suffer a catastrophic injury, it’s important that you have an opportunity to seek compensation from the at-fault driver. This is because these injuries are usually extremely costly, and you may have medical requirements that last long into the future.
After a serious collision, your priority has to be your health. Get medical attention as soon as you can, so that, hopefully, the effects of any injuries can be minimized. Then, once you are able to do so, you should look into your legal rights and decide if you would like to make a personal injury claim.