Car crashes can cause devastating injuries, particularly if a commercial truck is involved or when one or both vehicles are traveling at high speed. If any of your body parts are subjected to extreme force or pressure at impact, you could suffer a crush injury. These injuries can result in a variety of symptoms that could become life-threatening or life-altering.

Below, we discuss crush injuries in a car crash, including common symptoms and what they may be worth in an insurance claim. If you were seriously injured in a crash, our attorneys are ready to help you pursue full compensation for your damages.

We know crash victims often have many questions about insurance claims, including whether they need, or can afford, a lawyer.

At TSR Injury Law, there are no upfront costs or fees with our services. Our Bloomington-based car accident attorneys have been representing crash victims for more than 20 years. During that time, we have obtained millions on behalf of our clients. Unlike insurance companies, our goal is to obtain all the compensation you need, and we have the resources and legal experience to build a robust case.

How Could a Car Crash Cause a Crush Injury?

You may have heard about crush injuries happening in workplaces, such as factories or construction sites. For example, workers could have a body part get pinned under a heavy piece of machinery or caught between two pieces of machinery. Workers could also get hit by falling debris that pins them down, causing a crush injury.

These injuries can also happen in high-speed car crashes. If the force of impact is great enough, vehicles could suffer significant structural damage. This could cause your arms, legs or chest to get pinned in place by the wreckage.

If you get into a rear-end crash with a commercial truck, such as an underride crash, the back of the truck’s trailer could break through your windshield and hit you in the chest. If a commercial truck hits the back of your car and pushes your vehicle into another, your vehicle could be compacted, subjecting your body to a crush injury.

A semi-truck could also run over a smaller passenger vehicle or run over a pedestrian or bicyclist. This could cause a severe crush injury.

It may also be possible for a vehicle’s engine to be pushed into the passenger compartment during the collision. In a rollover crash, occupants may become pinned between the vehicle and the ground. Pedestrians could suffer crush injuries if they get hit by a car and are pinned between the car and a fixed object, such as a wall or another vehicle.

No matter the cause, these injuries can be severe, and without the help of an experienced attorney, it can be difficult to recover full compensation for your damages. TSR Injury Law is committed to pursuing full compensation.

Symptoms That Often Happen After a Crush Injury

There are numerous signs that a crash victim has suffered a crush injury, including the following:

These and other injury symptoms should be treated immediately. Waiting to seek treatment can be incredibly dangerous, particularly with a crush injury. Not seeking treatment quickly can put you at risk for life-threatening complications. This is especially true if the crush injury affects your torso, as your vital organs are inside.

Potential Long-Term Impact of a Crush Injury

Potentially life-threatening medical conditions can develop after crash victims suffer crush injuries. For example, if a limb was crushed in a crash, you might develop limb ischemia. This refers to reduced blood flow to the area. Even with treatment, victims may need to have the limb amputated. There is also a risk of cardiovascular complications.

Some of the long-term risks with crush injuries can include:

Crush Syndrome

When the body is subjected to intense pressure, cells can die quickly. When cells die this quickly, they release toxins into the bloodstream. This could put you into cardiac arrest or even cause kidney failure. In extreme cases, crush syndrome can be fatal. That is why immediate treatment for a crush injury is so important.

Hyperkalemia

Hyperkalemia occurs when cell death causes too much potassium to be released into the bloodstream. This condition could become fatal if it triggers cardiac arrest.

Hypovolemic Shock

This is a condition that occurs when you lose at least 15 percent of your body’s supply of blood. When this happens, your heart cannot pump enough blood through your body and your organs could shut down.

Compartment Syndrome

If muscles, nerves and tendons are compressed into a small space or compartment, tissues may be unable to get enough blood.

There may also be a risk of paralysis with a crush injury, such as a crush injury to one of the legs or to the spine.

Treatment for Crush Injuries

Unfortunately, there are times when a crush injury results in amputation of a limb. This may be the only way to remove some victims from the damaged vehicle.

There are also times when doctors later decide to amputate because of restricted blood flow, which can cause the cells and tissues in the extremity to die. It can be dangerous to leave a limb attached in this condition. It could cause infections or toxins to spread throughout the body.

Amputation is only necessary in extreme cases. However, there are many other potential treatment options, such as hemodialysis, which may help prevent kidney failure. Other treatments may include:

Determining the Value of a Claim for a Crush Injury

There are many factors that can affect the value of a claim for a crush injury, particularly the severity of the injury. For example, a crush injury to the torso could be much worse than a crush injury to an arm or leg. When a crush injury causes the amputation of a limb, the victim’s ability to work may be greatly affected, increasing the value of the victim’s damages.

Older victims and younger victims tend to be more fragile, which means a crush injury could be more devastating to their bodies. These victims may need more compensation than others.

Regardless of the victim’s age or health, he or she will likely need aggressive treatment for a crush injury. This treatment could reduce the risk of severe or even fatal consequences; however, it is not cheap.

Crash victims who suffer crush injuries may also need ongoing medical treatment. This means they may continue to accrue medical expenses, even after settling their claims and receiving compensation. That is why victims need an experienced attorney who knows how to calculate the full value of medical treatment.

Your attorney will need to review your medical records and talk to your doctors to determine what treatment you may need to manage your symptoms and protect your quality of life.

Injured in a Crash? Call to Discuss an Insurance Claim

Unsure about how to seek compensation for a crush injury or another type of injury you suffered in a vehicle crash?

Contact TSR Injury Law to discuss the crash and learn how we may be able to assist you. We represent crash victims at no upfront cost, which means no fees to take your case and no fees while working on your case.

While many claims settle, we are also prepared to take cases to court to obtain full compensation. Without an experienced attorney with a record of taking cases to court, it may be much harder to recover all the compensation you need.

Contact TSR Injury Law today. We are ready to help: (612) TSR-TIME.