Whiplash, Fractures, and Internal Injuries: Breaking Down Truck Accident Trauma

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Whiplash, Fractures, and Internal Injuries: Breaking Down Truck Accident Trauma

If you’ve been injured in a truck accident, you understand that these collisions are not like your garden variety car accident.

The physics of an 80,000 pound commercial truck colliding with a passenger vehicle are brutal. Injuries are severe, recovery takes much longer than you think, and the financial repercussions can haunt you for years down the road.

Here’s the thing:

Most victims do not even know what types of injuries they could possibly be dealing with — let alone what they are legally entitled to receive. It all starts with understanding common truck accident injuries and trauma.

Keep reading to learn:

• Why Truck Accident Injuries Are So Serious
• Whiplash — The Most Common Truck Accident Injury
• Fractures — Breaking More Than Bones
• Internal Injuries — When There May Be No Visible Injury
• Other Serious Injuries To Consider
• Steps to Take After A Truck Accident

Why Truck Accident Injuries Are So Serious

Imagine a 5,000 pound object colliding with an 80,000 pound object.

It’s not difficult to imagine which vehicle would win in a fight. Now picture that happening to you.

Trucks can weigh nearly twice as much as passenger vehicles when fully loaded. Multiply that by how fast trucks can often travel on our nation’s highways and you have a deadly recipe for disaster. 114,552 large trucks in 2023 were involved in injury accidents nationwide. That’s not parking lot nonsense we are talking about. Those are crashes that change people’s lives.

Wait, there’s more.

65% of truck crash fatalities in 2023 involved occupants of passenger vehicles — not the large truck drivers. When a truck hits your car, you do not stand a chance.

That is precisely why hiring an experienced Virginia truck accident lawyer is one of the best decisions you can make after a truck accident injury. Experienced legal teams have seen these injuries before and know how to fight for maximum recovery.

Whiplash — The Most Common Truck Accident Injury

Whiplash is the most prevalent soft tissue injury in any motor vehicle accident.

Here’s how victims typically sustain whiplash: during a crash, an occupant’s head will whip forward and backward in a cracking motion. This tears and strains ligaments, tendons and muscles all throughout the neck.

The catch?

Whiplash symptoms can take days to develop. Unlike other injuries you might instantly recognize, many accident victims feel completely fine until several days after the crash when the pain comes flaring back. Typical whiplash symptoms include:

• Severe neck pain and stiffness
• Chronic headaches
• Dizziness and blurred vision
• Inability to concentrate or insomnia

Any car accident can cause painful whiplash. But when you add the size and weight of a truck into the equation, things get exponentially worse. Truck accident victims can suffer long-term chronic whiplash symptoms that require months — if not years — of physical therapy, pain management and additional medical treatment.

Never ignore neck pain following a collision with a truck. It could get much worse.

Fractures — Breaking More Than Bones

Any impact with a commercial truck has the potential to fracture bones all over your body.

From arms and legs to ribs and pelvis, fractures are extremely common when colliding with an 80,000 pound vehicle. Head-on collisions can also lead to skull fractures and even spinal fractures. It all depends on the crash dynamics and where impact occurs.

Some fractures can be pretty straightforward to treat with rest and immobilization. Others, not so much:

• Compound fractures
• Comminuted fractures
• Vertebrae fractures

Major fractures can require surgical intervention, metal implants and countless hours of physical therapy and rehabilitation to recover. Pain, limited mobility and even nerve damage can sometimes persist long after recovery as well. And who can forget about the thousands of dollars in medical bills?

Internal Injuries — When There May Be No Visible Injury

Internal injuries are some of the most severe injuries you can sustain in a truck accident.

Unlike broken bones and whiplash, internal injuries may not show immediate symptoms. Since there may be no visible marks on the body, victims can overlook organ damage as a possibility. However, the blunt force trauma of a truck collision can cause severe internal bleeding to your body’s organs.

Including but not limited to:

• Liver
• Spleen
• Kidneys
• Lungs

This is what makes internal injuries so dangerous.

Not only can it take days to recognize internal injuries, but by the time something feels wrong, it may already be too late. Internal bleeding can cause irreversible damage if not caught early. Internal injuries can even be fatal if not treated quickly.

That’s why medical attention should always be sought after a truck accident, even when feeling fine. Internal injuries can be spotted with a simple scan before they become life-threatening.

Other Serious Injuries To Consider

Sure, whiplash, bone fractures, and internal bleeding are serious — but that is just the tip of the iceberg.

Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI): Jarring collisions can cause the brain to bounce around inside the skull. Head trauma can range from mild concussions to severe injuries that change a victim’s ability to remember, speak, and function on a day-to-day basis.

Spinal Cord Damage: Similar to TBIs, damage to the spine can cause permanent paralysis no matter how hard a victim works at rehabilitation. Full recovery varies and can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills.

Psychological Harm: PTSD, anxiety, and depression are common after surviving serious truck accident trauma. Mental health plays a huge role in recovery and should be treated with care.

Can you imagine living with any of the above conditions long-term?

Each of these injuries can drastically alter a person’s livelihood. The ability to work and provide for a family could be taken away in seconds.

Steps to Take After A Truck Accident

The ability to recover compensation hinges on the actions taken immediately following a truck accident.

Need a refresher? Here are some quick steps to remember:

1. Seek medical attention ASAP
2. Write down everything you can remember
3. Gather as much evidence as possible — photos, witnesses, truck info
4. Don’t talk to the trucking company’s insurance adjuster
5. Hire a truck accident lawyer ASAP

Large trucking companies have entire teams working in their best interest the second an accident is reported. Every victim deserves someone fighting for them.

The Bottom Line

When injured in a truck accident, the injuries sustained can be severe, traumatic, and life-changing.

Whiplash, fractures, internal bleeding, brain injuries, paralysis, and mental trauma are just a few injuries that truck accident victims commonly endure. Not only will these injuries impact victims physically for years to come, but they will create a financial burden every step of the way.

Don’t waste any time. Seek medical attention and reach out to learn how a truck accident personal injury lawyer can help build a strong case today.

The evidence at the crash scene does not last forever.