When you or a loved one suffers injury in a car accident, it’s essential to see a doctor immediately. Apart from being hazardous to your health, not seeing the doctor could affect your chances of getting compensation, even with the help of an Atlanta car accident lawyer.
You might feel fine at first, but you could experience pain or signs of internal injuries days or hours after the accident. When you visit a hospital, a doctor or other health professionals will run tests to determine the extent of your injuries. For example, they might request CT scans, X-rays, or MRIs.
Depending on the result, you might undergo surgery. This article will explore the most common surgeries after a car accident.
7 Common Surgeries After a Car Accident in Atlanta
After a car accident, you might need surgery to treat your injuries. Below are seven of the most common surgeries after an Atlanta car accident.
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Surgery for Stabilizing Bone Fractures
High-impact crashes often cause broken bones. For example, hitting external objects, compression during a car accident, or even being ejected from the vehicle can result in bone fractures. Some common bone fractures that can occur after a car accident include wrist, skull, femur, clavicle, or rib fractures.
Although not all broken bones require surgery and tend to heal independently, several fractures require surgical correction to fix the damage. Also, fractures can be life-threatening depending on the part of the body it occurs; therefore, surgery might be inevitable.
An example is a compound fracture that causes a bone to break through the skin. A surgeon will set the bone back in place to ensure it heals properly. Surgery will also help to close the skin around the wound.
Surgery might also be necessary to repair the torn tendons or muscles around the fractured bone. Additionally, you might require joint replacement surgery if you suffer a severe knee or hip fracture. Finally, you might need months or years of physical therapy after surgery. In such a case, your auto accident lawyer can include the cost of physical therapy in your economic damages.
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Brain Surgery
Brain injuries usually require immediate care. Depending on the type of brain injury, car accident victims might undergo emergency surgery to remove a blood clot, stop the bleeding in the brain, repair damage, or relieve pressure building up inside their skull.
These procedures can be quite risky, with long-lasting complications. However, the risks are even higher when you don’t have surgery, as the victim can suffer permanent brain damage or even death.
Most times, people who have brain surgeries experience cognitive impairments requiring rehabilitative therapy. Also, brain surgeries are usually physically demanding, with victims needing a lengthy recovery.
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Back Surgery
Car accidents can sometimes result in severe back injuries, including dislocated vertebra, broken vertebra, and herniated discs. You might need surgery to repair one or multiple back injuries. Some common back surgeries you can have after a car accident include the following.
- Discectomy is a back surgery where the doctors remove a portion of the herniated disc to relieve irritation, pressure, or compression in the nerves.
- Laminectomy is when the doctors remove a rear portion of the lamina or a vertebra to relieve pressure.
- Vertebroplasty involves injecting acrylic bone cement into the spaces and cracks of a broken vertebra. It is similar to an internal cast.
- Spinal Fusion is when doctors join two or more vertebrae together after a broken vertebra or herniated disc to ensure better stability and pain management.
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Surgery for Internal Bleeding and Injuries
During a car accident, one or more of your internal organs could get punctured or crushed. This could result in internal injuries or bleeding. The surgery required for internal damage varies and depends on the circumstances surrounding the accident. You might need a minimally invasive procedure or major surgery in some scenarios.
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Surgeries for Torn Soft Tissues
Soft tissue injuries affect the muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Minor soft tissue injuries like bruising, sprains, or swelling tend to heal independently. However, soft tissue damage could become permanent without proper treatment. Therefore, physical rehabilitation and surgery might be essential to repair the tendons and ligaments surrounding a broken bone.
Although not every soft tissue injury requires a surgical procedure, those that do tend to need a long recuperation period. After the surgery, therapy could be ongoing for weeks, months, or even years. Your doctor might recommend alternative treatments first before opting for surgery.
Your Atlanta auto accident lawyer would also include the cost of this treatment when seeking compensation for damages.
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Dental Surgery
Accidents sometimes damage the victim’s mouth, teeth, and gums. For example, when the head hits the steering wheel during impact, it sometimes results in missing or loosening teeth. As a result, victims could require dental surgery. Additionally, a bone injury might require a victim to undergo surgery.
Sometimes, an oral surgeon can successfully repair the victim’s teeth. However, in some cases, the surgeon could replace the damaged or missing teeth with dental implants.
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Plastic Surgery
Car accidents can sometimes result in burns, scarring from broken glasses, jagged cuts, and scrapes. In addition, these injuries might be on the face, arms, chest, neck, or hands. In such a case, an auto accident victim could benefit from plastic surgery to address the potential scarring and disfigurement.
A plastic surgeon can help victims repair uneven and deep cuts to minimize damage to their appearance. In addition, reconstructive plastic surgery, like using skin grafts to cover burned parts of the body or facial surgery to correct the impairment of your airways, could be necessary.
These surgeries help to manage pain and infection, recover functionality and heal without a constant physical reminder of the traumatic experience.
Our Atlanta Car Accident Lawyer Will Get You Compensation to Cover Your Surgery
It’s no news that injuries caused by a car accident can be severe and life-threatening. It’s also not uncommon for victims to experience chronic pain after an accident. Victims sometimes require surgery to provide relief and prevent permanent damage. These surgeries are expensive, and if someone else’s negligence caused the accident, you shouldn’t have to cover the costs yourself.
If you’re unsure how you’ll be able to cover the cost of your surgery, contact The Weinstein Firm. We can help you get the compensation you need from the at-fault driver and their insurance company. We’re excellent negotiators and will ensure you receive maximum compensation, not a penny less. Schedule a free consultation with our injury attorneys in Atlanta today.