Have you been in a car accident in South Dakota? Did you start noticing pain and other symptoms of injury days or even weeks after the accident? Are you wondering how long injuries can appear after a car accident? Sometimes, the signs of serious injury don’t appear until well after the crash that caused them.
These delayed onset symptoms can cause two significant issues. First, you may not seek medical attention if you believe you’re uninjured after an accident. Then, when your symptoms appear and you visit a doctor or hospital, your injuries may have worsened.
Second, if your symptoms only show up later, you may not connect them to the crash that caused them. If you didn’t start feeling pain in your neck until two weeks after the accident, it’s understandable that you wouldn’t think the accident is what caused your pain.
If you don’t connect your injuries to the car accident, you may not realize that you can seek compensation for them through a personal injury claim. Rather than paying for your treatment with your insurance or out of pocket, you could get the at-fault driver’s insurance to cover it.
Delayed Back and Neck Pain after a Car Accident
Back and neck injuries are some of the most common kinds of injuries suffered in car accidents due to the forces accidents place on the body. According to the Mayo Clinic, car accidents are the leading cause of these injuries in the United States, accounting for nearly half of all spine injuries each year.
To understand why these injuries only become apparent over time, let’s look at a whiplash injury. When your vehicle suddenly stops, your seatbelt holds your body in place while your head violently moves forward and backward or from side to side.
This violent movement can damage the muscles and ligaments surrounding your spinal cord and may cause spinal injuries. Immediately after the crash, you might have some soreness in your neck but feel fine otherwise. The pain may worsen over time; however, as your muscles become inflamed, bruising spreads, potentially leading to chronic pain and long-term effects. Physical therapy is often recommended to help alleviate pain and restore mobility.
Additionally, there may be a lot of adrenaline in your system directly after your accident that masks your pain. Over time, your adrenaline levels will return to normal, and the pain you experience will increase.
Delayed Internal Organ Damage Symptoms after a Car Accident
Back and neck injuries are not the only injuries you could suffer with delayed symptoms. Internal organ damage is usually challenging to see from the outside and can be life-threatening without proper treatment.
Many victims experience delayed lower back pain after a car accident or delayed neck pain after a car accident, as these symptoms may not fully appear until days or even weeks after the incident.
As with musculoskeletal injuries, you may not realize you have an internal injury until days after the accident when you begin to feel pain. Or, days later, you may notice large spots of bruising start to appear on your body, indicating severe internal bleeding.
A case report by the International Journal of Surgery found that seat belts can cause intestinal injuries that can go undiagnosed for multiple days. In some cases, the crash victims felt tenderness on their abdomens but didn’t think it was anything serious. Only later, after CT scans, did the true extent of their injuries become apparent.
Brain injuries are another type of internal injury that can take time for symptoms to appear. If you suffer a brain bleed, it may take time before you begin experiencing headaches, nausea, and other symptoms that would indicate something is wrong.
Compensation for Past and Future Impact of Injuries
You can seek various types of compensation through a personal injury claim, including compensation for economic and non-economic losses. Economic losses are things with tangible costs, such as:
- The cost of hospital stays, surgeries, medical treatment, prescription medications, and medical devices
- The wages you have lost as a result of not being able to work
- The cost of domestic help if your injuries prevent you from doing things around the house
Non-economic losses are things with intangible costs, such as:
- The pain and suffering you experienced due to your injuries
- The emotional distress you experience due to your injuries
- The loss of companionship or consortium
Notably, the compensation you can receive through a claim doesn’t only cover your past expenses. Some injuries, such as those experienced by car accident victims, are long-lasting or even permanent. This is why it’s so important to identify all the injuries associated with the accident.
If your spine injury means you can only work in a limited capacity for the rest of your life, you want to ensure you receive compensation covering your loss of future earning potential. Know what to do if your car accident injuries prevent you from working.
How a Watertown Personal Injury Attorney Can Help
A Watertown personal injury attorney can assist you in a variety of ways. A Watertown attorney can help identify and connect your injuries to your accident. They will gather evidence, negotiate with the other driver’s insurance company, and represent your best interests in court while you recover. Additionally, they can assist you in filing your claim correctly and ensure it’s within the three-year statute of limitations.
In cases of injuries with delayed symptoms, the opposing insurance company will attempt to distance your injuries from the accident. They want to be liable for as little as possible. However, an experienced Watertown car accident attorney can use accident reports, medical records, and expert witness testimony to help back up your claim.
The insurance company will have a team of lawyers on their side, so it’s essential to have a Watertown lawyer of your own who knows the personal injury claims process inside and out and can fight for your rights.
Watertown, South Dakota, Car Accident Attorney
Were you injured in a car accident in South Dakota? Contact Turbak Law Office, P.C. online or at 605-886-8361 for a free consultation about your case with one of our knowledgeable Watertown car accident attorneys. We’ll evaluate your case and answer any questions you have about the process. See results from the cases we handle and read testimonials from our clients. Learn more about our Watertown personal injury lawyers and meet with our esteemed South Dakota attorneys.
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