If you’re involved in a vehicle collision, the impact of the crash, the position of your seat belt, a deployed airbag, or contact with hard surfaces/objects inside the car can cause damage to one or more of your organs. If you suffered organ damage in a car accident in Minnesota, our Twin Cities referral service can find you the medical care and legal help that you need.
Organs That May Be Injured in a Twin Cities Car Accident
- Kidney. Impact to your lower back can bruise or lacerate your kidneys, causing internal bleeding and resulting in the need for dialysis or a kidney transplant in the worst cases.
- Liver. The frontal impact from a head-on collision is most likely to cause internal bleeding and damage your liver. Severe damage might necessitate major surgery or a transplant.
- Brain. Striking your head on the steering wheel, dashboard, or windshield can lead to internal bleeding, loss of oxygen, traumatic brain injury (TBI), or even death.
- Bowel. Damage to the bowel is usually not life-threatening but can result in obstruction, infection, or abscess.
- Lung. A hard impact to the chest or a broken rib can puncture your lung, impeding your breathing and causing extreme pain.
- Spleen. Trauma to the stomach or abdomen can rupture or puncture your spleen, leading to internal bleeding in the stomach and possibly death.
- Pancreas. Damage to the pancreas is less common than other organ damage suffered in a car wreck but can be serious when it does occur.
Symptoms of Organ Damage
Below are symptoms you might suffer if you’ve sustained organ damage in a car crash:
- Pain with swelling or bruising
- Passing or vomiting blood
- Shock
- Extreme thirst
- Chronic fatigue
- Dizziness
- Low blood pressure
- Shortness of breath
- Limited range of motion in one or more body parts
Even if you have none of the above symptoms after your wreck, you could still have organ damage. The adrenaline produced by your body in reaction to the stress of the accident might be masking your symptoms. For this reason, you should seek medical attention immediately.
If you’re not transported to the ER after your crash, make an appointment to see our car accident doctor as soon as possible. Early diagnosis and treatment are vital to your recovery process. Organ damage of which you’re not yet aware might be revealed by a doctor’s exam, X-rays, and other diagnostic tests.
An immediate medical exam also gives you proof that you’ve suffered injuries in the car crash. This proof is important to the insurance claim you’ll file for damages resulting from the wreck:
- Medical bills
- Property damage
- Lost wages
- Physical pain and suffering
- Psychological/emotional trauma
- Funeral/burial costs if you’ve lost a loved one due to organ injuries suffered in a car wreck
The Need for a Twin Cities Car Accident Lawyer
Minnesota is a no-fault insurance state, so you’ll file your claim for damages with your own auto insurance company. You cannot, however, expect your insurer to cooperate and accept your claim without question. Organ injuries can require costly surgeries followed by more medical care during a long recovery. This means your claim could be very expensive for the insurance company, which has an obligation to its shareholders to remain profitable. It does so by disputing expensive claims from accident victims with severe injuries like organ damage.
The insurance company’s adjusters and attorneys could try to deny your claim or contact you to make a quick, low settlement offer that might not even cover your medical expenses. In such a case, an experienced car accident lawyer can help you by gathering evidence of your injuries, negotiating fair compensation from the insurance company, and fighting for you in court if the insurer will not offer a fair award.
Have You Sustained Organ Damage in a Twin Cities Vehicle Accident?
Our car accident doctor can administer natural treatments to relieve pain associated with some types of organ damage, and our free referral service can find you the right local physician to treat any injuries that fall outside our scope. We’ll also locate an experienced Twin Cities car accident lawyer to demand reasonable compensation for your damages. Contact us online or call 763-251-PAIN for a free consultation. We’re the number-one referral service for Twin Cities car crash victims with organ damage.