Car accidents happen unexpectedly. The pain that follows isn’t always predictable, but it’s your body’s way of telling you what’s wrong. Pain can be useful if you use it to determine what’s wrong and how to treat it. Our Atlanta orthopedic doctors can help you interpret what your anxiety is telling you.
Timely Treatment is Necessary After a Car Accident
If you are injured in a car accident, the chances are that the pain won’t just go away. Waiting it out or toughing it out is a bad idea. Waiting often makes receiving monetary compensation for your injuries less likely.
From the insurance company’s point of view, the longer you wait to seek medical care after an accident, the more likely it is that your injuries could be attributed to something unrelated to the car accident, such as falling down the stairs.
Even if you don’t have pain on the first day or two, you should still seek medical evaluation. Chemicals in your body can mask the pain for some time after the accident. If the car didn’t get damaged, you may feel like you shouldn’t have sustained any injuries, but even small accidents can cause injury to the spine or head.
Consider the Injuries After a Car Accident
In a car collision, your body is subject to forces that greatly exceed what it was built to handle. This can result in pain from a number of injuries. The following are some of the injuries that are commonly caused by car accidents and should receive treatment promptly.
Concussion
Concussions happen when your brain hits your skull. This can happen when you hit your head against a window or headrest in a car accident. What many people don’t realize is that a concussion can also happen even if your head doesn’t hit anything. This can occur if your head is jerked around during an accident.
Nausea, vomiting, fatigue, loss of consciousness, and slurred speech all are symptoms of a concussion after a car accident. After an accident, you may also notice that your sense of taste and smell feel off. These can be serious symptoms and are good reasons to see a doctor.
Whiplash
Some symptoms of whiplash overlap with that of a concussion. Whiplash comes primarily from rear-end collisions when your car is hit from behind. The impact of being hit pushes your body forward, but your head falls behind and then snaps forward. Ligaments and muscles are stretched in both directions. This can cause intense pain and stiffness in the days following an accident. Neck movement may be inhibited, and dizziness and blurred vision may result.
Back Injuries
Back pain and injuries are common in accidents. They tend to manifest themselves in sharp pain that gets aggravated when you move a certain way. Bulged discs, fractured vertebrae, and torn or stretched ligaments can all result from a car accident.
The pain that stems from any of the above injuries is telling you that there is a problem. These problems need specialized treatment from doctors, physical therapists, and orthopedic specialists who are familiar with auto accident injuries. Proper diagnostics and imaging get to the heart of the problem so that injuries are adequately compensated.
Where to Find Treatment After a Car Accident
AICA Orthopedics has physical therapists, chiropractors, and orthopedic specialists at each of its accident and injury treatment centers. It’s all part of our plan to serve you better. Having all these specialties under one roof means that you will be able to recover more quickly. Also, you will have the peace of mind that your injuries are well documented so that you can get adequate compensation for them. AICA Orthopedics is committed to treating patients and aiding them in recovery. Contact us today about your auto accident injuries.
