Head and Back Injuries Caused by Motorcycle Accidents
I’m Ed Smith, a Motorcycle Accident Attorney in Tracy. A motorcycle injury to the back, head, or neck can damage or disrupt the delicate neurological system in the body, which acts as the communication center for your bodily activities. Severe traumatic stress to the brain or spine stemming from a motorcycle accident, in particular, can be extremely risky. In many cases, the potential damage may be long-term or permanent.
Closed Head Injury
Motorcycle injuries often occur in the form of a ‘closed head injury’ even when the motorcycle rider was wearing a safety approved helmet. The signs of a closed head injury may include:
- Nausea
- Frequent headaches
- Bouts of memory loss
- Ringing sensation in the ears
- Feeling of dizziness
- Sudden aggression in behavior
Sometimes advanced diagnostic tests such as an MRI may also reveal nothing, but the injured person may have some of the closed head injury symptoms. This may require additional neurological tests. Professional medical advice should be urgently sought in such cases.
A closed head injury may sometimes not show any clear physical symptoms. The injured motorcycle rider may not have any obvious signs such as fractures, cuts, or bruises at the skull’s base. This is typical of head injuries, as the symptoms are not immediately visible in many cases when the motorcycle accident occurs. No tears, bleeding, or swelling of the brain or connected tissue membranes may be evident in the beginning.
Such injuries emanating from motorcycle accidents can be life threatening, and will have a deep impact on the injured person’s quality of life. Intensive medical treatment as well as ongoing care is usually necessary to ensure the best possible recovery.
Motorcycle Injuries to the Brain
Following a motorcycle injury to the head or neck, the physician at the emergency room will conduct an exam and may order tests to diagnose the severity of the head injury, and follow it with appropriate treatment. In many cases, the injury to the brain may be considered an ‘invisible injury’, and may not be detected by a regular Glasgow scale or a radiological exam.
Such injuries to the brain may adversely affect the injured person’s cognitive and thinking ability and may also compromise their ability to remember simple tasks or solve problems that require some logical reasoning. Brain injuries may result in changes in the injured person’s behavior and personality and affect their short term memory.
If you or one of your loved ones has a reason to believe that you might have sustained a closed head injury or another minor injury to the head during a motorcycle accident, it is advisable to consult immediately with a physician. Even minor injuries to the brain can cause confusion, clouded thinking, memory loss, and other disruptions in daily activities.
A specific injury to the brain may also cause problems related to speech, vision, muscular coordination, and the sense of smell, touch and taste. A neurological doctor’s services should be sought in order to have a correct diagnosis and treatment of a possible brain injury. If a head injury is left undiagnosed or untreated, it could potentially lead to a permanent disability, or worse still, blood clotting in the brain, which could cause serious neurological impairment or even death.
Motorcycle Injuries to the Neck and Back
Motorcycle riders involved in an accident may sometimes complain of pain on the neck or the lower back. This condition should not be ignored, and the injured person should consult with a neurologist or an orthopedic surgeon. Seemingly minor symptoms of pain in the beginning could actually turn out to a serious injury of the spinal cord or a disc injury.
It can be difficult in some cases to differentiate between a soft tissue back and neck injury arising from a motorcycle accident. These injuries may cause pain and spasms in the cervical, lumbar, or thoracic region. Symptoms of these disc injuries could include:
- Constant or variable pain according to activity
- Pain that radiates down to the extremities, and feels warm
- A tingling sensation or numbness in the fingers, toes, hands, or feet
The radiating pain in such cases of back or neck injury predominantly occurs on one side of the body, but sometimes it may also be bilateral. The injured person should contact a medical professional in order to minimize the damage.
Related Articles by Tracy Motorcycle Accident Attorney, Ed Smith:
- The Unique Risks of Motorcycle Riding
- Insurance Requirements For Motorcycles in California
- Numerous Complications Can Happen With a Traumatic Brain Injury
- Motorcycle Accident Statistics
Motorcycle Accident Attorney in Tracy
I’m Ed Smith, a Tracy Motorcycle Accident Attorney. Have you or someone you love been injured in an accident? If you need the help of an experienced lawyer, please contact me right away at (209) 227-1931 or (800) 404-5400 for compassionate, free and friendly advice. You can also reach me online anytime at AutoAccident.com.
See some of my valued past client’s reviews are posted on: Google, Avvo, and Yelp.
I am proud to have been recognized by the Million Dollar Forum for my work obtaining case settlements and/or verdicts in excess of $1 million.
You can review a list of some of my recent Verdicts and Settlements here.
.JPG){kind=link}