What is the hardest injury to prove after a car accident? The hardest injuries to prove after a car accident are mild traumatic brain injuries, soft tissue injuries, and mental health disorders because there are fewer visible signs of damage.
Injuries such as whiplash, concussions, and muscle tears may be debilitating, but proving their existence can be challenging, especially when testing does not reveal a clear indication of injury.
While these are the hardest injuries to prove after a car accident, many others exist that could prove more challenging. Consult with a Charlotte car accident lawyer today.
Traumatic Brain Injuries Are Difficult to Prove
Some traumatic brain injuries create long-term impact on cognitive function, but may be challenging to see from outward appearance. These injuries often include mild to moderate concussions, which occur due to the rapid back-and-forth movement of the brain within the skull. This creates contusions and damage to brain tissue inside the head, but there is often no outward visible injury present.
Testing for traumatic brain injuries often requires the use of pre-injury assessments, which most people do not have. MRIs and CT scans often are normal, with no visible signs of trauma or damage to the brain tissue.
To diagnose these conditions after an accident, medical providers have to err on the side of caution, use a number of subjective questions, and consider any other injuries present.
A victim’s personality, memory, communication, and overall behavior may differ after an accident, indicating damage to the brain. When you have questions, our Charlotte personal injury lawyers have answers.
Speak with a Charlotte car accident lawyer and get a free consultation today.
Call (980) 294-4931Difficult Car Accident Injuries to Prove: Soft Tissue Damage
Soft tissue injuries are damage to tendons, ligaments, and muscles. These injuries may be incredibly painful and limit mobility, but they may occur without any outward signs.
Some people lack any wounds, bruising, or skin damage but suffer debilitating soft tissue injuries. Some of the most common soft tissue injuries occurring during car accidents include:
- Whiplash: Damage to the neck muscles and ligaments due to the rapid snapping of the head forward and backward after a rear-end accident or significant impact.
- Strains: Muscle strains and tearing often occur as a result of the force involved in an accident. These happen throughout the body but specifically the shoulders and back in rear-end accidents, T-bone accidents, and rollovers.
- Contusions: A contusion is a deep bruising often resulting from blunt force trauma to an area of the body. In a car accident, this often results from striking the steering wheel, dashboard, airbag, or seatbelt.
- Sprains: A sprain occurs when there is tearing or overstretching of the ligaments that hold the joints in place and connect them to bones. In car accidents, strains in the knees, wrists, or ankles are very common.
- Tendonitis: Inflammation can occur in the joints due to the impact, but it can also develop when a person braces for an impending strike. For example, bracing for impact can cause tendonitis to develop in the shoulders if a person puts their arms out.
Soft tissue injuries can be devastating, leading to significant pain and loss of mobility. Many soft tissue injuries are hard to diagnose after a car accident, as they do not show up well on X-rays. Most heal, but proving how painful and debilitating they are right after an accident can be challenging.
Psychological Trauma Following a Car Accident
Another of the most challenging injuries to prove after a car accident is the psychosocial damage they can cause. Car accidents are traumatic even when serious injuries do not occur, but proving their impact on your day-to-day life can be very hard to do. Some of the most common psychological injuries a person may suffer include:
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Serious anxiety and fear of driving or getting into a vehicle
- Depression
- Other types of mood disorders
- Medical-related trauma from the recovery process and pain experienced
To prove psychological trauma after a car accident, victims must demonstrate a clear change in their thought patterns, behaviors, and mental health. Working with a mental health professional and documenting the day-to-day impact can help to prove this type of injury.
Keep a journal of your symptoms, allow family members to provide testimony about what they see changing in you, and encourage a mental health expert’s testimony if insurance companies refute your claims.
Chronic Pain Disorders Caused by Car Accidents
Some people suffer significant pain during a car accident that improves over time, dissipating while the nerves heal. However, others develop conditions such as complex regional pain syndrome, fibromyalgia, or other pain conditions that do not fully improve, creating ongoing pain and limitations. Some disorders, like chronic pain, may have no outward signs that make them obvious.
Some people with these conditions suffer from persistent and severe pain, even when the initial injury heals. Very few tests are available to clarify what injuries exist and how debilitating this type of pain can be.
To the insurance company and the at-fault party, it can seem like these are unsubstantiated claims or those without any documentation to show just how limiting they are to your quality of life. The lack of objective, clear testing to show what these injuries stem from opens the door for disputes.
To prove chronic pain disorders, victims need to demonstrate how the pain continues to impact their day-to-day life, mobility, ability to work, and relationships. Keep a journal to log changes in how you feel and the limitations you experience.
It is also important to work with a pain management doctor who can help clarify the severity of your injuries and losses, demonstrate your efforts to heal and recover, and provide insight into what the future holds.
Seek the Help of a Car Accident Lawyer Who Fights for You
Shane Smith Law recognizes that not every accident injury is obvious and many of the most debilitating are hard to prove. With a long history of winning even the most challenging cases, you can expect our car accident lawyer to become your advocate in these events.
We bring experts to testify for you, clarify insurance company questions, and demonstrate the impact your injuries have. Let our car accident lawyer prove that your injuries are not your fault. Request a free consultation.
