Delayed abdominal pain after a car accident?

After you experience a car accident, you may leave the scene thinking that you got away without injuries, despite your frustration at the turn of events that you did not expect that day. However, in some cases, the injuries you sustain in a car accident do no cause pain until hours or even days later.

We refer to these as delayed pain injuries, and they may include injuries to the head, the muscles groups in the neck and back, damage to the spinal column or nerves within the column, and abdominal injuries. While all of these injuries are potentially serious and deserve medical care as soon as possible, abdominal injuries pose more serious threats than the others. If you experience abdominal pain after a car accident and do not seek medical attention immediately, your injuries may quickly turn fatal.

Organ damage

One of the most common causes of delayed abdominal pain after a car accident is damage to your internal organs. With only a little damage, the organ may continue to function at partial capacity for some time. However, once the organ can no longer function, it will fail. Organ failure is a particularly painful way to die, and it is not recommended to gamble with such a possibility.

Organ failure can occur in a matter of hours or days, and once organ failure sets in, it is very difficult to stabilize and heal you.

Internal bleeding

Internal bleeding is not the common cause of delayed abdominal pain after a car accident. Internal bleeding is just as dangerous as external bleeding, but is not as easy to recognize. If the site of internal bleeding is very large, you may die very quickly, even in a matter of minutes. However, if the site is small, there are even more concerns to consider.

A small internal bleeding site may quickly grow an infection, which may easily spread to the rest of the body, infecting other organs, including the brain. Once this spread occurs, you may die very quickly.

Get help as soon as possible

If you recently experienced a car accident and have not sought medical care from a professional, please do so immediately. If you choose to wait, you may wait too long, and lose your life or greatly complicate your injuries. Once you understand the nature of your injuries and receive proper treatment, you can consult with a legal professional to understand your legal rights and determine a wise path forward.