You feel fine. The collision between your car and a pickup at an intersection caused significant damage, but you and the other driver exited from your respective vehicles seemingly unscathed. The front-end damage, crumpled fender and smashed-in passenger door seem to be the only outcomes from this crash. Or are they?
You head home with a lot on your mind. After dinner and only hours after the accident, you begin to discuss the situation with your spouse. One second you are talking, the next, you collapse into your spouse’s arms. This represents a strong sign of delayed injury symptoms related to at that earlier crash.
Changes in personality, numbness
In extreme cases involving delayed injury symptoms, there have been instances in which a person involved in a car collision goes to bed and dies in his or her sleep. So, make sure to get medical advice when you suspect an injury.
Here are some delayed injury signs:
- Headaches, dizziness and fatigue: Such symptoms represent a potential concussion and traumatic brain injury. Bleeding on the brain is a serious injury.
- Changes in personality: This represents a potential sign of a concussion and traumatic brain injury. There have been cases in which a well-mannered person turns into someone who becomes aggressive and often uses expletives. You know something is not right.
- Abdominal swelling and pain: Deep bruising to your torso is a potential sign of internal bleeding to organs such as the heart, liver, lungs and spleen. Such injuries may not surface until hours or days after an accident.
- Neck, shoulder pain and numbness: Many people involved in rear-end collisions suffer from these symptoms – a potential sign of whiplash. Neck pain gradually worsens, while some people experience the loss of feeling in the hands. Nerve damage is a possibility.
- Back pain: Soreness in the lower back is not uncommon after being struck from behind. Damage is possible to muscles and ligaments as well as potential cracks to the vertebrate.
These types of injuries may sneak up on you. You feel fine, and then, suddenly, you become woozy and need to sit down or even become unconscious. Understand that a delayed injury symptom is a possibility and make sure to seek medical treatment.
