As a Houston resident, you are no stranger to car accident reports. You may also see your share of them as you travel back and forth between school, home and work. As often as you see victims carrying on with their lives like their accidents never happened, there is always the possibility of them having hidden injuries.
Car accidents can cause you to end up with injuries that are not visually obvious. You could feel and look normal, not realizing that you have internal injuries that require immediate medical attention. Take some time to learn about hidden car accident wounds.
Damaged muscles and ligaments
The forward impact of a car accident can cause your joints to suffer extreme trauma. You may think that the soreness you feel in your shoulder, legs and knees is from bruising. But there is the possibility that your muscles and ligaments in the affected joints are strained or torn.
Traumatic brain injuries
When your car collides with another object, your head typically moves forcefully back and forth or side to side. Your head may also come in contact with objects from the accident.
Your skull is not enough to protect your brain from damage in a car accident where there is a lot of force and debris. It can become seriously bruised and cause you to experience short- and long-term damage. Common signs of brain injury include memory loss, changes in personality and headaches. These symptoms usually show up in the weeks and months after the trauma.
Emotional impact
Many people become so focused on the physical side of car accident injuries that they forget about the emotional effects. Common psychological effects include anxiety, depression, irritability, changes in sleep patterns and eating habits and a crippling fear of motor vehicles.
Some injuries can take time develop and become obvious, so many people dismiss them as minor. It is important for victims to get medical treatment right away to rule out the possibility of injuries and receive treatment for less obvious ones.
