Considering the range of injuries someone could sustain in an accident, a concussion might seem minor by comparison — perhaps minor enough that the victim doesn’t seriously consider seeking medical treatment. But early diagnosis is vital, as an undiagnosed head injury could lead to symptoms such as vision problems, cognitive issues, permanent disability, or worse.
If you’re involved in an auto accident, seek medical care right away. Doing so is the best way to diagnose a concussion, protect your health, and help you begin building evidence for your claim against the at-fault driver.
What Is a Concussion?
The American Association of Neurological Surgeons defines a concussion as “an injury to the brain that results in temporary loss of normal brain function.” A type of traumatic brain injury (TBI), concussions are the result of the bruising, stretching, or bruising and stretching of the brain’s nerves and blood vessels. These injuries cause chemical changes that present as concussion symptoms.
If you’re in an auto accident and hit your head on the dashboard, steering wheel, or other structure inside the car, you could have a concussion. Additionally, although it’s a widely-held belief that concussions only result from a direct hit to the head, that doesn’t always hold true.
Any sudden jolt that causes the brain to move inside the skull can cause a concussion. For example, if you’re in a rear-end collision, the sudden forward thrust of the head followed by the rapid recoil could lead to the brain “bouncing” against the skull and suffering a concussion with no external impact at all.
Didn’t Lose Consciousness? You Could Still Have a Concussion
It’s a myth that you have to lose consciousness to have a concussion. People can suffer concussions and remain fully conscious — in fact, it’s more common not to lose consciousness.
Common Signs and Symptoms of Concussion
Concussion symptoms generally fall into four major categories:
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- Physical: Headaches, dizziness, trouble balancing, sensitivity to light, and vision problems.
- Cognitive: Trouble concentrating or thinking clearly, slow response times, grogginess, and problems with short- or long-term memory.
- Social or emotional: Feeling more anxious, nervous, irritable, angry, or sad than usual, or being spurred into those emotions more easily.
- Sleep: Sleeping more or less than usual or having difficulty falling asleep.
In cases of severe injury, concussion symptoms can appear immediately after the accident. Symptoms may also be delayed and begin to flare within hours or days. The sooner you receive medical care, the sooner you can start to recover.
Seek Professional Medical Attention After a Concussion
Concussions are often referred to as mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBIs), but that’s only because the majority of concussions are not life-threatening. In reality, these injuries can cause significant symptoms that affect you in multiple ways.
There are different types of concussions and grading ranges from mild to moderate to severe on a scale from 0 to 4. Early testing, treatment, and monitoring help ensure appropriate recovery plans.
The Risk of Delayed-Onset Concussion Symptoms
Because concussion symptoms are wide-ranging and can seem like other unrelated health issues, you may not realize you’re experiencing TBI-related symptoms after a head injury. Additionally, concussion symptoms don’t always present right after an injury. Symptoms can appear within hours, but they could also appear days or weeks post-accident.
Since symptoms can be delayed, you could have a moderate or severe head injury that requires immediate attention following a collision without knowing it. And, without a proper medical exam, it’s impossible to know if you’re experiencing bleeding or swelling that could lead to secondary injuries. Delaying care can lead to lingering symptoms, more severe symptoms, or post-concussion syndrome. Rarely, concussions can lead to seizures, coma, or death from undiagnosed bleeding and brain swelling.
For these reasons, it’s important to seek professional medical attention immediately following an accident. Waiting even a day or two could delay the treatment of a potentially more serious injury or life-threatening condition. Heading to the hospital as soon as possible will help you get diagnostic testing and a treatment plan in place.
Postponing a medical visit also creates a challenge when seeking any type of legal claim for the concussion and persisting symptoms or injuries. Early documentation allows your attorney to negotiate with your insurance provider and build a case for appropriate compensation. Always keep copies of documents from visits to the emergency room, urgent care, primary care physician, or specialist following the accident, and pass them on to your attorney as soon as possible.
Next Steps After a Concussion
If you or someone you know is in an accident and might have a concussion, seek medical attention right away. Delaying care could not only negatively impact your health, it may also make filing a legal claim more difficult.
For the sake of your well-being, follow these steps.
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- Get medical treatment as soon as possible. If you can, call 911 at the scene and go to the hospital for an examination. After that, it’s a good idea to follow up with an appointment with your primary care physician for a more thorough assessment. Limit the time between the emergency room visit and seeing your doctor to one to two days to ensure you’re receiving appropriate care and gathering solid documentation of the early stages of your injuries.
- Gather documentation. While waiting for emergency care at the scene, try to gather documentation such as photographs or witness information. After you head to the hospital, start keeping records of any appointment related to your injury and recovery, such as emergency room trips, medical appointments, urgent care visits, and outpatient diagnostic testing. Your attorney will need these records to build your case.
- Call your attorney for guidance. Navigating insurance claims and other legalities can be difficult after any accident. Speak to a professional with experience in personal injury and traumatic brain injury cases for guidance on how to move forward as soon as you can do so.
- Continue monitoring symptoms throughout recovery. Stick to the treatment plan outlined by your primary care provider and monitor any changes in symptoms throughout your recovery. Keep your attorney updated.
If you’ve been in a collision, it can be difficult to know the next steps to take. Our firm is available to help take the stress out of the situation so you can focus on your health.
THE CAR ACCIDENT LAWYERS AT FDAZAR
For nearly forty years the attorneys at Franklin D. Azar & Associates have helped thousands of injured people obtain complete and timely compensation for their losses. Our proven track record and expertise have allowed us to grow into the largest personal injury law firm in Colorado, with offices in Aurora, Boulder, Colorado Springs, Denver, Fort Collins, Grand Junction, Greeley, Lakewood, Littleton, Longmont, Pueblo, and Thornton. If you’ve been injured in a rideshare, bus, car, truck, bicycle, or motorcycle accident, you may be entitled to compensation. Please call the car accident attorneys at FDAzar day or night at 800-716-9032, or contact us here for a free consultation and no-obligation evaluation of your case.
