You may have nerve damage after a car accident.
Unfortunately, nerve pain is often overlooked after a car accident, which may cause some injured parties to not seek medical attention for their symptoms until it is too late to file a claim for damages.
Common Injuries Resulting in Nerve Damage after a Car Accident
Some of the most common injuries resulting in nerve pain after a crash include:
- Whiplash: Whiplash occurs when the head suddenly jolts forward then back, resulting in neck trauma. While whiplash typically affects the muscles, tendons, and other soft tissue in the neck, it can also damage your nerves.
- Spine Impact: If your back or spine is impacted in the wreck, your nerves may become pinched or compressed, resulting in pain, weakness, tingling, and/or numbness. You may have experienced this type of injury, called radiculopathy, in the form of sciatica.
- Herniated discs: A herniated disk occurs when one of the rubbery disks between vertebrae is damaged. This can pinch or otherwise impact a spinal cord nerve, resulting in weakness, tingling, numbness, pain, and/or paralysis. While herniated disks may heal on their own, surgical intervention may be required.
- Other nerve injuries: Between broken bones, internal injuries, and other common injuries after a car wreck, nerves throughout the body can be damaged. They may sever in an open wound or may be stretched or squeezed by the impact.
Symptoms of Nerve Damage
After a wreck, you may feel all sorts of pain from your injuries. As such, it can be difficult to identify nerve damage in areas that suffered other injuries, such as broken bones. However, if you experience any of these symptoms, seek medical attention immediately:
- Numbness in the hands, feet, arms and/or legs
- Throbbing, burning, or jabbing pain
- Muscle weakness
- Heightened sensitivity to touch and/or temperature
- Unexplained pain during activities that should be painless, like sleeping
- Paralysis and/or lack of coordination, including falling
- Problems eating and swallowing
- Inability to sweat or excess sweating
- Sudden drops in blood pressure
If you have suffered nerve damage in a Jacksonville car accident call Henry Gare Personal Injury Attorney at (904) 387-6101 for a free consultation.
