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These post-accident symptoms suggest brain injury

| Dec 12, 2019 | Firm News

When you bear the full force of sudden impact in a Rhode Island automobile collision, there’s no telling what the disastrous consequences might be. The fact that you survived the incident is indeed something to rejoice about; however, just because you didn’t die doesn’t necessarily mean you have escaped unscathed. You might have suffered serious emotional trauma, especially if the collision occurred because of a drunk driver or driver negligence.

It’s common to suffer bruises, lacerations or whiplash from jolting around the vehicle and bumping up against hard surfaces during a collision. It’s important to closely monitor your condition in the weeks following the incident, even if your doctors released you from the hospital. Traumatic brain injuries and other internal injuries are not always immediately apparent.

Issues to watch for

If any of the symptoms on the following list should occur in the days or weeks after you were involved in a collision, it’s best to return to the hospital or your doctor’s office for further medical examination:

  • Facial discomfort or head pain
  • Difficulty walking straight
  • Vision impairment
  • Trouble speaking or forming coherent thoughts
  • Feeling confused or disoriented
  • Dizziness, nausea or vomiting
  • Trouble sleeping
  • Sudden mood swings
  • Memory problems

The human brain is an amazing organ; however, it is also susceptible to serious injury if you bear the force of sudden impact in a car accident, or if you are suddenly and violently shaken, such as what may happen if your head or neck jolts forward when struck by a vehicle from behind. Concussion is the most common form of brain trauma that car accident victims often experience. More serious brain injuries can cause permanent disability.

Achieving as full a recovery as possible

If you experience the symptoms mentioned earlier or other adverse health issues, it’s imperative, not only that you seek medical attention but that you inform your care provided that you were recently involved in an automobile collision. This will help medical workers provide more thorough treatment. A doctor will want to rule out various internal injuries or brain trauma if he or she knows you were in a wreck and are not feeling well.

Driving back and forth to doctor visits or physical therapy sessions gets expensive. Missing work during recovery may cause additional financial strain. Rhode Island law provides recourse for accident victims to seek compensation for damages, which helps many people alleviate the financial burdens associated with the incidents that caused their injuries.

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