When you handle car and truck crashes for a living, you learn about the sneaky injuries that cause problems but are often undetected. Concussion without loss of consciousness is just such a beast.
It even features an ICD Code ( International Classifivcation of Disease) ICD 10. The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center reports that more than 90% of all concussions do not include a loss of consciousness.
One of the issues is that individuals who sustain a concussion in a car or truck accident often can't reliably say whether they actually lost consciousness or not. They sometimes purport to know they were " knocked out" or " saw stars", but the nature of such an injury makes patient reporting somewhat unreliable.
So what are the signs one should be aware of after a crash to alert one to the likelihood of a concussion?
There are a panoply of symptoms that can be present including headache, nausea, dizziness, vomiting, irritability, difficulty concentrating and difficulty sleeping. Obviously, when getting initial post-accident medical evaluation and treatment, the victim may be so disoriented that they are unable to appreciate their injury and association with a concussion.
While more than a million and a half concussions are treated in emergency rooms every year, it is reported that 40% of all such concussions are not treated in the hospital and 25% are not treated at all.
So this is a real problem and precisely the sort of thing that auto liability insurers contest. If a substantial period of time goes by from the date of the car or truck accident to the first recognition that a concussion in all probability took place, make sure to document to your healthcare provider all the symptoms that you endured in the preceding weeks or days, which support this diagnosis.
Concussion is literally a traumatic brain injury and needs to be taken seriously and treated professionally or the long-term consequences can be catastrophic. Concussion car and truck crash cases require experienced and skilled representation. Call Clark and Steinhorn, LLC at (301) 317-1001
