It's no surprise that truck accidents can lead to various injuries, but one type, in particular, is more likely. Whiplash and soft tissue damage are common, as well as head trauma or broken bones. The degree of severity varies depending on the injury you're experiencing because each has different effects.
Injuries resulting from truck collisions vary based upon circumstances, with some being much more frequent than others – such as whiplash-head trauma-broken bone incidents following an accident, for example.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates 3 million people are injured every year by vehicle accidents, with some suffering significant bodily harm like broken bones or a severe concussion. This happens when an individual is thrown out of their seat belt's safety zone and suffers from spinal cord injuries, such as when they have been ejected through the windshield in a rollover.
In general, trucks weigh about twice as much as passenger cars. That's why it should be no surprise that heavy-duty tractor-trailers can cause catastrophic results when two collide, but this is also true for compact automobiles may sustain little to no injury from even severe crashes resulting from such high-speed impact forces. The difference between weight alone is enough to create horrific consequences, including death and serious bodily harm without any other factors being involved whatsoever.
Truck accidents happen all the time and can be just as dangerous as car crashes, if not more. They often mirror each other in injuries, but it's crucial to refuse medical treatment unless a complete evaluation is done first to detect hidden traumas like traumatic brain injury that may go unnoticed for some time after an accident.
Truck accident statistics
In the U.S., truck accidents are responsible for 5,000 deaths and 200,000 injuries each year, with a cost of $1 billion in property damage annually – but these numbers don't paint an accurate picture because they only take into account car-truck collisions someone died or was injured. These statistics exclude other types of vehicle crashes, such as pedestrian vs. motor vehicles, resulting in death and injury at rates near those seen between cars and trucks (although not to the same extent).
In recent years there has been a lot more focus on safety regulations involving large commercial trucks; when it came time to make improvements like making mirrors wider so drivers could see pedestrians walking alongside them better or adding side guards designed to protect occupants.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) recently released data shows that 6% more accidents involving commercial trucks in 2017 than the year before, despite a decrease of miles traveled.
The NHTSA found that these incidents have increased, even when you account for lower gas prices and fewer total miles driven on highways over the course of this study period. One contributing factor is distracted driving or driver fatigue due to long hours spent behind the wheel without sufficient sleep while we're all trying our best not to miss out at work to keep up with financial commitments that are increasingly becoming more demanding nowadays.
Even though tractor-trailers cause minor total damage annually (compared to other vehicles), they have two times as many fatal injuries. This is compared to the fewer than 1% of all car-related deaths in America each year, even if you account for how much higher percentage of crashes that these accidents make up on every mile traveled by cars and trucks respectively.
One thing is for sure. Truck drivers are not the only ones who need to be careful on roads. Improper lane changes can easily lead up fatality rates from 4% at worst-case scenarios up by 20%, which shows how important paying attention while driving around large trucks becomes when you're not even piloting one yourself!
What are the most common types of truck accident injuries?
Listed below are the most common injuries people sustain in truck accidents. Some of these include paralysis or amputation, traumatic brain injury, and spinal cord injury from a broken neck or back fracture.
Broken bones
You can suffer broken bones just from a trucking accident! The most common types are fractures and breaks, which could happen anywhere: arms, legs, ankles, or feet. A compound fracture is where one bone pierces another or when there's damage to two different parts of the same bone; these cases may require surgery and hospitalization time too long.
Head and traumatic brain injury
After a serious truck crash, it takes more than just time to heal. It can be an invisible injury that many are not aware of and might go undetected because you may not know what TBI is or how significant brain damage could affect them long-term, with permanent cognitive impairment being in possibility if they sustain severe brain trauma from the accident.
Spine injuries
Spinal cord injuries can have a lasting impact on your mobility and well-being. A bump in the truck or blow to the back could cause permanent damage that leaves you paralyzed from injury, which is irreversible for many people who suffer these types of injures.
Soft tissue injuries
When a person is thrown about or ejected from the vehicle in an accident, they can suffer sprains and strains. They could also end up being hit by loose cargo that causes their soft tissue to be torn. This may even result in them experiencing a concussion depending on how hard of impact it was!
Amputation
In the event of a severe collision, people may lose their arms or legs and hands. In some cases, this can save them from further pain because they are badly injured in an accident with large pieces of metal that rip through the skin. Sometimes these limbs have been so crushed in incidents like these; doctors must cut off damaged extremities without any anesthesia to prevent excruciating pain later on.
When you're crushed or burned by the impact of an 18-wheeler's crash, it can be hard to escape with all ten fingers and toes intact. When rare accidents happen that cause severe injury, such as truck collisions injuring someone severely enough, amputation might need to occur to live without the pain.
Burns
Your whole life, you've only ever seen cars and trucks. But what about the people who drive them? Driving a truck is one of the most dangerous jobs out there! Carrying flammable cargo that makes it susceptible to explosions in collisions with other vehicles leaves many suffering from burns if they contact steam or hot water when escaping from ruptured radiators or sheared metal body parts.
The severity of your burn is a significant thing to consider. If you have third- and fourth-degree burns, then it can be quite serious depending on the size and depth of penetration as well as other factors such as age.
Whiplash
For some people, the force of a truck crash can cause their head and neck to snap forward then back. This “whiplash” motion may strain muscles in your neck as well as joints or ligaments you didn't even know existed. Usually, this pain goes away after a few weeks, but sometimes they develop chronic whiplash-related symptoms that linger for much more extended periods.
Treatment options for tendonitis can help reduce the inflammation caused by overstretched tendons. Medications like muscle relaxers and anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen are just some ways to treat this challenging condition that many athletes face.
Internal Injuries
A truck accident can be devastating. If you survive, it might still leave your internal organs damaged and in need of a surgeon to mend them. A broken rib or sternum could tear into delicate tissues like the heart, stomach, liver – leading to bleeding that's likely life-threatening if not treated with surgery quickly enough.
