If you’re traveling along a Kansas highway and another vehicle hits you, life, as you previously knew it, may never be the same. When you’re transported to a nearby hospital for medical care, EMTs will inform the attending emergency room physician that you were involved in a motor vehicle collision. This enables the physician to know what types of tests to run and examination to perform to check for car accident injuries.
After an initial medical examination, you might receive pain medication, or even undergo surgery or a more minor procedure, such as getting stitches. Once staff have performed a full round of immediate care and treatments, you will either have to spend time as an admitted patient in the hospital or will be sent home. In either case, it’s critical to continue to monitor your health because some accident-related symptoms may experience a delay.
Delayed car accident symptoms that often signify serious, underlying injuries
If you experience any of the symptoms shown in the following list after you’ve recently been in a car accident, it’s imperative to report your condition to your primary care doctor or to return to an emergency room for assistance:
- Blurred or double vision
- Sensitivity to sounds or light
- Headache
- Nausea or vomiting/abdominal pain
- Numbness or tingling in an appendage
- Abrupt mood swings
- Trouble eating or sleeping
- Feelings of confusion
- Trouble remembering things
- Ringing in the ears or bruising behind the ear
When one or more of these symptoms arise in the aftermath of a car accident, it’s best to seek immediate medical attention. Such symptoms are often a sign of internal injury, including but not limited to a traumatic brain injury. Long-term prognosis often hinges upon early intervention of symptoms.
What if another driver’s negligence was responsible for the collision?
After you were involved in a car accident, you likely exchanged contact and insurance information with the other driver (or drivers, if there were numerous vehicles involved). Beyond that, you may be able to seek restitution for damages, especially if there is evidence that the collision was preventable were it not for another motorist’s negligence.
If you suffer injuries, especially a severe condition like a brain or spinal cord injury, you’ll no doubt need ongoing medical care to help you achieve a full recovery. In some cases, that’s not even possible. You may end up with a disability that impedes your quality of life. Kansas personal injury laws state that a person deemed responsible for a car accident that results in injuries to another is accountable for his or her actions when a recovering accident victim files a claim in a civil court.