The force of even a low-impact crash can result in TBI

The injuries sustained in a rear-end collision can be surprisingly severe. Head injuries, for example, are very common for victims of low-impact crashes.

In a rear-end collision, the problem is the force of the impact and how prepared you are to deal with it. Your head, neck and back are at particular risk, with traumatic brain injury being among the issues you hope to avoid.

The link to vehicle crashes

Although we hear a lot about head injuries in reference to athletes, most traumatic brain injuries are the result of car crashes and falls. In fact, data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that some two million Americans suffer TBI every year. The figures break down to about 286,000 such injuries related to vehicle accidents annually, but there may be many more because TBI is not always discernible at the time of an incident.

Two types of TBI

Traumatic brain injuries can either be open or closed. A foreign object that penetrates the skull and enters the brain constitutes an open injury, while the more common closed injury occurs when the head snaps back and forth due to impact or strikes a hard object, such as the steering wheel.

Symptoms

After a rear-end collision, you might feel fine except for a case of nerves. You might get out of the car, walk around, exchange insurance information with the other driver and never realize you have a head injury. You might not feel any symptoms for several days, but then you could begin to experience headaches, dizziness, confusion, memory problems or other signs that indicate some kind of health issue.

The danger of waiting

Because the symptoms of TBI are not readily apparent, a personal injury attorney will tell you that a prompt medical evaluation is essential after a car crash, even a minor collision. As the victim of a crash, your health comes first. However, a timely medical report will tie any injury you might have directly to the accident. This will be very important when it is time to seek an insurance company settlement, whether you have a mild concussion or the more serious traumatic brain injury.