Traumatic amputations are some of the most horrific car crash injuries. People involved in high-speed collisions or crashes involving particularly large vehicles could lose a limb or extremity. Everyone at the scene of the crash may panic in such cases, as they worry about the injury proving fatal without immediate trauma care.
Traumatic amputations can be incredibly painful. People can lose dangerous amounts of blood. They are vulnerable to permanent nerve damage and severe infections. The injured person may spend days in the hospital recovering and may then require months of rehabilitation support to recover lost function.
Often, people assume that the worst car accident injuries occur immediately at the scene of a crash. However, some people who lose body parts because of motor vehicles do not lose them during the crash. Instead, their amputation occurs later.
Not all injuries heal completely
Medical science has come a long way in the last century. Doctors can treat all kinds of injuries that may have previously proven fatal. The unfortunate reality for those with severe car crash injuries is that modern trauma care can’t fix everything.
Particularly in scenarios involving crush injuries, treatment may not be an option. Severe crush injuries can create damage so extensive that people require multiple surgeries just to repair the tissue damage. Even then, they may still have long-term functional limitations and painful symptoms related to their injuries.
Medical professionals sometimes try to save body parts that sustain crush injuries. Other times, they must make the opposite choice. Surgical amputation frequently offers the best prognosis to individuals who sustain significant crush injuries and comminuted fractures.
When the bone breaks into many tiny pieces or connective tissue, nerves and musculature sustain damage, medical professionals may determine that the best course of action is to remove the damaged limb. Amputations can be quite expensive because they require extensive trauma care. They can also affect people’s earning potential and create accommodation expenses.
Those coping with catastrophic car crash injuries may need help covering their expenses. Pursuing a compensation claim after a crash-related amputation can help people recoup medical expenses and lost wages. Insurance alone may not be able to cover the costs of limb loss, so injured people may need to explore other options, including a personal injury lawsuit.