When car accidents happen in New York and across the country, there is always a good chance a driver, passenger, pedestrian or someone else will suffer a serious injury. In fact, according to the Association for Safe International Road Travel, roughly 4.4 million individuals require medical care after motor vehicle crashes annually.
While some accident-related injuries are impossible to ignore, others may not appear immediately. That is, to cope with the inherent stress of a crash, your body may mask injury symptoms. Regrettably, you may not realize you have sustained an injury until hours, days or even weeks after an accident.
Fight or flight
Even though many of the dangers human ancestors faced are gone in modern-day America, the body’s stress response has not yet caught up. When a stressful event occurs, the brain typically prepares the body to fight or flee. The release of stress hormones increases heart rate and interfere’s with the body’s ability to experience pain.
Emergency treatment
Despite recent advancements in automobile safety, a car crash may cause you to suffer a traumatic brain injury, organ damage or bone fractures. These injuries may have few or no outward signs. If you do not receive emergency medical treatment for hidden injuries, however, you may be vulnerable to additional complications or even death.
Because it may be virtually impossible to determine if you have suffered a life-altering in the immediate aftermath of a crash, you should always go to the emergency room for a full medical evaluation. Put bluntly, even if you do not think you need it, emergency treatment may save your life.