When a motor vehicle collision occurs, the consequences can include major property damage and significant personal injuries. Some of the injuries possible in a car crash could permanently change an individual’s health, their relationships and their economic circumstances.
A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the worst injuries possible in a car crash. Moderate to severe brain injuries can produce a range of different symptoms that can affect someone’s ability to live independently or maintain a career. People often fail to notice the early warning signs of brain injuries in part because they don’t understand the numerous different mechanisms that could produce a TBI. The following are the most common sources of brain injury caused by a car crash.
Blunt force trauma
The one type of brain injury people know to check for after a crash is an injury resulting from physical impact. People often realize that someone who hit their head on a window or the dashboard could be at risk of a brain injury. Someone who hits their head during a collision could experience bleeding or inflammation inside the skull that leads to slowly-worsening symptoms.
Violent physical motions
Someone properly restrained in their seat might not hit a window, the dashboard or the steering column when the crash occurs. However, their brain could still be at risk. The motions of the vehicle could shake the people inside so violently that their brains move around inside their skulls and begin to bleed or swell. Crashes in which vehicles spin or flip over are more likely than the average collision to produce this kind of brain injury.
Penetrating injuries
During a crash, small pieces of the vehicle may fly through the air. Glass and other debris can potentially cut into someone, causing penetrating injuries. What looks like a small injury to the face or scalp might actually hide an injury that could affect the brain. Penetrating injuries can cause physical trauma inside the skull and may put someone at risk of a severe infection.
High-speed crashes and collisions involving vehicles of vastly different sizes are more likely than the average collision to cause severe injury, including traumatic brain injuries. People who understand the potential risks involved in a crash may recognize when they need to seek medical care after a collision.
