Delayed Injury Symptoms After a Crash

Physical injuries can occur in many different ways. Common causes include car or motorcycle accidents, work-related injuries, slip and falls on others’ properties, and injuries sustained during recreational activities. Regardless of how the injury happens, a key concern is that soft-tissue damage often does not produce symptoms right away. You can walk away from a seemingly minor motor vehicle accident feeling alright, only to realize days or even weeks later that you are, in fact, experiencing symptoms of an injury. This is often because your body releases adrenaline and endorphins after the shock of an accident, which can temporarily mask the pain from a soft tissue injury.

Delayed injury symptoms can be compensable in a personal injury claim. However, the longer you wait begin getting medical treatment and pursuing your claim, the more resistance you may encounter from an insurance company claim adjuster or a defense attorney representing the at-fault party in an accident.

At Verderame Law Group Arizona Injury Lawyers, our attorneys have experience settling claims for all kinds of accident-related injuries. In this post, we focus on what to do if you experience delayed injury symptoms after a car, truck, or motorcycle crash, or if you are involved in an injury-causing accident as a pedestrian.

To find out how we can help you with your Arizona personal injury claim, give us a call or contact us online to schedule a free consultation with one of our experienced personal injury attorneys.

Common kinds of crash injuries and their delayed symptoms

The kinds of car accident injuries you can experience are well known, as are their symptoms, which you may not notice immediately. Here are the most common types.

Neck and back injuries

The sudden force of a collision can cause unnatural motion in your spinal column, which can contribute to soft tissue damage in the neck and back.

Whiplash

Whiplash occurs in a car accident when your head and neck undergo sudden, forceful motion. This can be forward and backward in a front- or rear-end collision, or from side to side if you are struck from the side.

Whiplash can cause strains and inflammation in soft tissues like muscles and ligaments in your neck, shoulders, and back. You may walk away from the crash feeling no effects, but after a few days, you may begin to experience neck pain and stiffness, persistent headaches, and pain in your arms and shoulders.

Additional symptoms of whiplash can include fatigue, dizziness, vertigo, and a sensation of numbness or tingling in your arms, hands, or both.

Spinal injuries

Common spinal injuries after a car accident can include herniated discs, fractures, nerve compression, or tearing or inflammation in your muscles, ligaments, or tendons surrounding your spinal column.

• Neck pain and stiffness often appear 24 to 72 hours after the accident.
• Back pain and shoulder pain can begin more slowly, often several days later, possibly evidencing soft tissue injuries, a herniated disc, or a spinal misalignment.

As the injured soft tissues become inflamed, the muscles surrounding your spine will work to stabilize it, and the pain you experience will gradually become worse and eventually lead to chronic pain. This can make it hard for you to move or to feel comfortable when standing up or lying down.

Traumatic head injuries

Sometimes the force of an accident can cause your head to strike a surface in the car, like a driver or passenger window, or sometimes the crash can launch an object in the car into the air, and it can strike your head.

Common injuries that can occur after head trauma are post-concussion syndrome and, in more severe cases, traumatic brain injury. These occur when your brain moves inside your skull, causing injury when it strikes the skull. In severe cases, this can lead to bruising of the brain, damage to your eyes or optic nerves, or brain bleeding.

Delayed symptoms of traumatic head injuries can include:

• Dizziness, nausea, or vomiting
• Confusion, impaired memory, and problems concentrating
• Slurred speech
• A ringing sensation in your ears (tinnitus), or sensitivity to noise
• Headaches
• Insomnia
• A sense of anxiety, depression, irritability, and mood swings; in some cases, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can eventually manifest.
• Sensitivity to light, double vision, and blurred vision

Serious traumatic brain injury, if left untreated, can ultimately lead to death.

Internal bleeding and blood clots

A serious collision can cause blunt force trauma to your internal organs, which can injure them and lead to internal bleeding. This is particularly the case when the impact forces your body violently against your seatbelt, placing severe pressure on the abdominal region.

Internal bleeding is the result of ruptured blood vessels bleeding into body cavities and surrounding soft tissues. The symptoms can take time to appear, and may include severe bruising (contusion), confusion, dizziness, a feeling of lightheadedness, and fainting.

A blood clot is a mass made up of blood cells, platelets, and proteins. If this mass moves into another part of your body through one of your blood vessels, then it could cause significant harm by cutting off blood circulation to other internal organs, including your heart, lungs, or brain.

Delayed warning signs of a blood clot can include swelling, pain, warmth, and color changes in one limb, or sudden shortness of breath, chest pain, rapid heartbeat, or coughing up blood if the clot travels to the lungs. Conditions like deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, heart attack, or stroke are serious complications of blood clots and require emergency medical care.

What do delayed symptoms mean for personal injury settlements?

The chances are that if you have been injured in a car accident, your personal injury claim will settle outside of the courtroom. This is particularly likely if one or more insurance companies are involved in settlement negotiations.

Shortly after filing an insurance claim, you will likely be contacted by an insurance adjuster who may ask questions or request a written or recorded statement. If you are experiencing delayed injury symptoms, the adjuster or a defense attorney may argue that your injuries were not caused by the crash, are less severe than claimed, or were made worse by a delay in treatment.

It is a good idea to see a doctor as soon as possible after a car accident. This is true even if you do not feel any symptoms. A doctor can diagnose some soft tissue injuries that you may not be aware of, and this can be important in establishing medical evidence to support your personal injury claim in settlement or in court. By seeing a doctor right away, you can also head off a possible excuse a claim adjuster might use later – such as arguing that because you delayed seeking treatment, your injuries were not significant.

Another good idea is to keep a journal to record any symptoms you experience and when you are feeling them. This information can also be useful in settlement or trial because it can serve to document and refresh your recollection.

Generally, when an insurance claim adjuster contacts you, you should not offer any statement to a claim adjuster regarding fault, or discuss any symptoms you are – or are not – presently experiencing.

If you believe that someone else was at fault for the motor vehicle collision, it is also a good idea to contact a personal injury law firm as soon as possible. Do not sign any documents a claim adjuster sends to you or accept any offer of settlement until you have spoken with an attorney first. When you have an attorney to represent you, you can be better assured that claim adjusters and other attorneys will not be able to try to elicit statements from you that are not in your interest. An experienced personal injury attorney can help you pursue the compensation available under Arizona law to help you recover from your injuries.

Have you been injured in a motor vehicle accident in Arizona?

At Verderame Law Group Arizona Injury Lawyers, we represent Arizona residents who suffer from the effects of car, truck, motorcycle, and other motor vehicle accidents. These include claims for traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, broken bones, respiratory problems, or any injury caused by a vehicle crash.

We handle insurance settlement negotiations and prepare your legal claim, so you do not risk missing Arizona’s two-year statute of limitations for most personal injury claims – and any shorter deadlines that can apply, such as notice-of-claim and one-year limits for cases involving public entities or employees. We represent clients with claims for negligence, product liability, and wrongful death cases if you have lost a loved one in a vehicle accident.

Consultations are free. We take cases on a contingency fee basis, which means we only get paid if the case settles or we obtain a verdict on your behalf.

For help now, call our Phoenix auto accident attorneys or contact us online today.