Blunt trauma injuries are pretty common in car accidents as the victim gets thrown against different components of the vehicle, like the steering wheel, dashboard, and more.
The rib cage, part of the chest area, protects the vital organs of the human body, and any impact on the rib cage can cause extreme pain or be life-threatening. Below are superior Los Angeles automotive accident lawyers who will talk about car accident rib pain and how to recover maximum financial compensation.
If You Received Broken Ribs or Have Chest Pain Following a Car Accident, You Need to Contact Ehline Law
If you or your loved one got rib injuries from a car accident that was not your fault, you might be able to claim compensation for the damages. Contact Ehline Law and our experienced car accident attorneys for an evaluation of your case.
Types of Rib Injuries from an Auto Accident
Chest pain from a chest injury can be expected after an accident, even when an airbag gets activated. These types of injuries can either be minor or life-threatening since they can affect other organs inside the rib cage.
Here are some of the different types of rib cage injuries a car accident victim can get:
- Fractured ribs: The immense force of the car accident can cause the bones that form the rib cage to break or fracture, leading to rib fractures, and such types of chest injuries are extremely painful. These injuries can cause pain when the lungs expand and contract, and broken bones can put pressure on the internal organs leading to swelling in the area.
- Soft tissue injuries: Any tissues around the chest area can get damaged due to the impact leading to muscle strain, extreme discomfort, and chest pain when breathing, affecting the victim’s way of life.
- Bruising: A fractured sternum or any injuries to the chest wall muscles can cause bruised ribs leading to many different symptoms like swelling, redness, tenderness, chest pain, and more.
- Flail chest injury: This is the most complicated of the injuries as it impacts and breaks the chest bones in multiple places, causing chest deformity and even death if the organs get injured in the process.
- Other injuries: There are other types of injuries like costochondral separation, which disconnects the rib bone from the breast bone, or intercostal strains that affect the muscles holding the rib cage.
Is Chest Pain Common with Rib Injuries?
With any injury with nerves intact, there is bound to be pain and suffering, but the pain level depends on the injury’s severity. A flail chest injury is more painful than bruising, rib fracture, or even sternum fractures since more bones get broken, which causes a lot of pressure on internal organs upon expansion and contraction of the chest.
Chest pain symptoms for all these rib injuries are the same from swelling to bruising and more, and to help diagnose the injury, a car accident victim must undergo a couple of tests like X-rays and CT scans.
Can a Rib Injury Lead to Complications?
Although victims may face severe chest pain and pelvis pain for their injuries, there may be cases where complications can occur, which can potentially be life-threatening to the individual.
A broken rib can lead to a collapsed lung when the broken bone penetrates the lungs or the chest wall, reducing pressure in and around the chest cavity. Excessive trauma can also cause cardiac arrest if it impacts the aorta, the main artery responsible for transporting blood throughout the body.
The complications from the injury depend on how the rib bones get broken and how these impact the movements within the cage itself.
How to Treat Broken Ribs?
There may not be particular medical treatment for a fractured rib, as unlike other types of broken bones that can get cast, doctors can not bind the ribs or the chest, as this will cause more chest pain. Depending on the situation, a medical professional will provide guidelines on treatment and recovery.
For example, fractured ribs reduce breathing capabilities, which can cause pneumonia or mucus in the lungs. To avoid that, a doctor may guide patients on slow breathing techniques and prescribe pain medications. Recovery times for treating rib injuries depend on the severity of the injuries, the age of the individual, any prior health conditions, and other factors.
Contact an Experienced Personal Injury Attorney Today
Rib injuries can put you on bed rest, thus affecting your income status, which can further put a burden on you and your family when paying medical bills. It would help if you didn’t bear the financial burden of an injury that was not your fault.
If you are experiencing chest pain or have difficulty breathing from a car accident due to someone else’s negligence, contact Ehline Law and our experienced personal injury attorneys today and get a free consultation on your case.
Are you experiencing chest pains from a car accident? Contact us at (213) 596-9642 for more information on how we can help.
We Proudly Serve Los Angeles Personal Injury Clients
Personal Injury Lawyers in Los Angeles proudly serving the following Los Angeles zip codes: 90001 / 90002 / 90003 / 90004 / 90005 / 90006 / 90007 / 90008 / 90009 / 90010 / 90011 / 90012 / 90013 / 90014 / 90015 / 90016 / 90017 / 90018 / 90019 / 90020 / 90021 / 90023 / 90024 / 90025 / 90026 / 90027 / 90028 / 90029 / 90030 / 90031 / 90032 / 90033 / 90034 / 90035 / 90036 / 90037 / 90038 / 90039 / 90041 / 90042 / 90043 / 90044 / 90045 / 90046 / 90047 / 90048 / 90049 / 90050 / 90051 / 90053 / 90054 / 90055 / 90056 / 90057 / 90058 / 90059 / 90060 / 90061 / 90062 / 90063 / 90064 / 90065 / 90066 / 90067 / 90068 / 90069 / 90070 / 90071 / 90072 / 90073 / 90074 / 90075 / 90076 / 90077 / 90078 / 90079 / 90080 / 90081 / 90082 / 90083 / 90084 / 90086 / 90087 / 90088 / 90089 / 90090 / 90093 / 90094 / 90095 / 90099 / 90189 / 90210 / 90211 / 90213 / 90230 / 90232 / 90247 / 90248 / 90272 / 90290 / 90291 / 90292 / 90293 / 90294 / 90295 / 90296 / 90402 / 90501 / 90502 / 90710 / 90717 / 90731 / 90732 / 90734 / 90744 / 90748 / 90810 / 90813 / 91040 / 91041 / 91042 / 91043 / 91214 / 91225 / 91303 / 91304 / 91305 / 91306 / 91307 / 91308 / 91309 / 91311 / 91313 / 91316 / 91324 / 91325 / 91326 / 91327 / 91328 / 91329 / 91330 / 91331 / 91333 / 91334 / 91335 / 91337 / 91340 / 91342 / 91343 / 91344 / 91345 / 91346 / 91352 / 91353 / 91356 / 91357 / 91364 / 91365 / 91367 / 91371 / 91388 / 91393 / 91394 / 91395 / 91396 / 91399 / 91401 / 91402 / 91403 / 91404 / 91405 / 91406 / 91407 / 91408 / 91409 / 91410 / 91411 / 91412 / 91413 / 91416 / 91423 / 91426 / 91436 / 91470 / 91482 / 91495 / 91496 / 91497 / 91499 / 91504 / 91521 / 91522 / 91601 / 91602 / 91603 / 91604 / 91605 / 91606 / 91607 / 91608 / 91609 / 91610 / 91611 / 91612 / 91614 / 91615 / 91616 / 91617 / 91618