Most car crashes only result in mild personal injuries or property damage losses. But, a small minority of crashes are severe enough to cause fatalities or catastrophic injuries. A collision could lead to a spinal cord injury or a brain injury that may affect someone’s quality of life and earning potential indefinitely.
High-speed collisions and crashes between vehicles of significantly different sizes may increase the risk of catastrophic injuries. Motor vehicle collisions are one of the more common sources of limb loss in the United States. There are actually two separate ways in which a wreck might lead to the loss of a limb or an extremity.
Traumatic amputations can occur during a crash
In a severe collision, the initial force of the crash could lead to the traumatic amputation of a body part during the incident. A traumatic amputation is an injury so severe that it cuts or tears off a body part. Obviously, traumatic amputations are incredibly dangerous experiences that could lead to severe blood loss and major infections. A traumatic amputation almost always leads to emergency transportation to a medical facility and surgery to treat the injury as best as possible.
Some injuries lead to medical amputation
While traumatic amputations can easily occur during a car crash, people may also suffer injuries that result in doctors choosing to amputate certain body parts. Crushing injuries are common in collisions where vehicles crumple. A crushing injury can cause extreme damage to soft tissue and may break a bone into so many small pieces that medical professionals do not anticipate the body healing the injury. If the damage is extreme, the only option may be to surgically amputate the injured body part.
Whether the amputation occurs at a hospital or at the scene of the crash, a patient likely faces a long road to recovery. The emergency medical care they require could cost tens of thousands of dollars, and their amputation may also experience a dramatic, negative impact on their earning potential.
Someone who suffers a catastrophic injury may quickly reach the realization that a basic insurance claim won’t be the best option in their case. Filing a personal injury lawsuit against a driver who causes a severe crash could help someone better recover the expenses generated by a catastrophic injury, such as limb loss.