Internal Injuries Caused by Maryland Car Accidents
As frequent as car and truck accidents may be, the physical injuries they leave behind are in no way easy to accept, much less recover from. As Maryland auto injury attorneys, the skilled legal team at the law offices of Lebowitz & Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers, is well versed in the state and federal laws that pertain to personal injury and automobile insurance claims. Any victim of a traffic accident caused by a negligent driver should be aware that he or she has options following a serious car, truck or motorcycle crash.
There are many kinds of bodily injuries that can result from the collision between two or more motor vehicles, especially when such an accident takes place at a high rate of speed. Most commonly, the driver and passengers of a family sedan, minivan or SUV can receive cuts and bruises to varying degrees. Bone fractures, both simple and compound, can also occur quite frequently to victims’ legs, hips and arms; while fractures of the spine and closed-head trauma can take place depending on the force of the collision and the type of crash.
In some instances, occupants caught in a car or truck wreck may suffer an injury to one or more of their internal organs. While difficult to detect, these types of injuries can leave a person in serious, sometimes even life-threatening condition. Blood loss alone from a ruptured organ can turn into a grave situation very quickly. In cases where an internal organ is damaged, the blood lost collects inside the body and is not always evident to emergency responders.
Some victims, though conscious, may not realize how serious their condition truly is just following a bad traffic wreck. Some of the organs that can be severely injured in a bad roadway collision include the spleen, pancreas, liver and stomach. When internal bleeding takes place due to a ruptured organ, the victim can go into shock because of the significant volume of blood loss. This occurs as the body begins to shut down, sometimes because of the blood loss and also due to possible nervous system damage.
If left untreated, victims of serious internal organ damage can die from their injuries at the scene of the accident, on the way to the hospital, or in the emergency room itself. The sooner a car accident victim receives medical attention, the better the chances of survival. As experienced personal injury attorneys, Lebowitz & Mzhen has the skills and training to help families file a wrongful death lawsuit against a negligent driver when their loved one has been killed in a senseless automobile or commercial trucking crash.
There are various categories that cover internal trauma. These include blunt trauma, penetrating trauma and decelerating trauma. In the case of blunt trauma, the victim’s internal organs and other structures, such as veins and arteries, can be damaged when the occupant’s body collides at high speed with a portion of the vehicle’s interior. The blunt internal trauma that typically takes place may cause unseen wounds to the victim’s organs either through contact with the impacting object, or by the transfer of force within the body as a result of the impact.
In situations of penetrating trauma, a car accident victim can be badly hurt as a result of an object puncturing the skin and other outer tissues, such as muscles, tendons and ligaments, which ends up tearing a hole in one or more blood vessels. Typical examples of these types of internal trauma include stabbings, gunshot wounds, or falling or being struck by a sharp object. Even in cases where penetrating trauma is severe, it is possible for emergency personnel to initially overlook the seriousness of a penetrating wound if the bleeding is mostly internal.
Under some circumstances simply the force of deceleration — for example, when a vehicle strikes a bridge abutment or other immovable object — may cause the body’s internal organs to shift position within the victim’s chest or abdominal cavities. This violent and near-instantaneous action may cause blood vessels to shear away from their respective organs, which can cause internal bleeding to occur. Such instances have been known to result in intracranial bleeding, such as epidural or subdural hematomas.
As we have mentioned previously, victims of severe roadway collisions who have sustained blunt or penetrating trauma should receive medical attention and treatment as soon as possible. As auto injury attorneys, Lebowitz & Mzhen know that patients who have survived traumatic injuries in auto, truck or motorcycle accidents that can be attributed to another person’s negligence should consider seeking damages via a personal injury lawsuit. We understand that certain internal injuries can require costly and sometimes long-term medical treatment.
Naturally, any legal solution should be sought after a victim has received medical treatment for his or her injuries. This is because internal damage to organs and other critical bodily systems can easily result in fatal consequences. It is important to know the difference between the different types of internal trauma. The following is a brief list of the more common kinds of internal injuries that can often be life-threatening if left untreated for any length of time.
Abdominal Aorta Rupture
One of the more serious and often deadly internal injuries involves a rupture to the abdominal aorta. This kind of injury can easily occur if the victim’s stomach becomes compressed during a car or truck accident. Usually fatal, an abdominal aorta rupture results in large quantities of blood spilling into the injured victim’s abdominal cavity. In many cases, death can often occur within minutes following the injury.
Pneumothorax
As one of the most severe of penetrating trauma, pneumothorax can also be quite dangerous for victims who do not receive treatment in a timely fashion. In cases of one of pneumothorax, the victim’s own broken ribs can actually puncture the individual’s lung, which in turn can result in a collapsed lung. Once air from the lung enters the chest cavity, normal lung function is impeded to the point of reducing the victim’s oxygen intake. Medical treatment is then required to remedy the condition and return the victim’s normal breathing function.
Ruptured Spleen
Another very serious organ injury is the rupturing of an accident victim’s spleen due to blunt-force trauma. In certain traffic accident situations, if a vehicle occupant receives a heavy blow to the left side of his or her body, the sheer force of the impact can rupture the delicate spleen. Spleens that become damaged due to any kind of blunt-force trauma must usually be removed by a surgeon. The resulting condition will necessitate the patient being given immunizations to prevent infection, such as pneumonia. As Baltimore auto accident lawyers, Lebowitz & Mzhen know that a splenic rupture can require costly medical intervention that not only can be financially distressing for a victim and his family, but which often can detrimentally affect the victim’s quality of life down the road.
Internal Bleeding/Hemorrhaging
This type of condition, though broadly described as internal bleeding or internal hemorrhaging is just as severe and potentially life-threatening as other traumatic injuries to the body. Internal hemorrhaging is usually the result of the many and varied blood vessels in the area of an impact wound or blunt trauma injury becoming damaged and unable to clot or repair themselves. The resulting internal bleeding can be so serious as to require emergency medical treatment. Certainly, if left undiagnosed and untreated, these kinds of internal injuries may lead to cardiac arrest.
If you or someone you deeply care about is recovering from a severe internal injury due to the negligence of another driver, the legal team at Lebowitz & Mzhen urges you to seek a qualified personal injury lawyer with experience filing auto injury claims. Our goal is to help those innocent victims of negligence-related automobile and commercial trucking collisions here in Maryland and over in the District of Columbia. We believe that everyone deserves proper and effective legal representation.
As experienced Baltimore trial attorneys, our staff is skilled in the thorough preparation of personal injury lawsuits. We know that proving negligence can be difficult without the proper research. Because of this, every case that we take on is treated as though it will be fought in a courtroom setting. We know that those well-prepared cases also have a chance of being settled out-of-court.
In these instances, a settlement can be better for plaintiff and his family because it allows them to avoid the stress that can accompany a lengthy trial while also recovering damages more quickly. The professional legal team at the law offices of Lebowitz & Mzhen is ready and willing to discuss the details of your commercial trucking, passenger car or motorcycle injury accident. Please feel free to contact our offices toll-free at (800) 654-1949; or email either Jack Lebowitz or Vadim Mzhen to arrange for a free, no-obligation initial consultation.