After getting into a car crash, you will likely experience some form of injury to the head, neck and/or back. These areas suffer the greatest damage and will often cause you great potential issues in both the long and short term.
However, the effects you suffer from a head injury will depend on whether you have a mild, moderate or severe one. It is thus important to understand how to tell each type of injury apart from the other.
The differences between mild, moderate and severe injuries
Mayo Clinic discusses some of the differences between traumatic brain injuries and mild or moderate injuries. First, you are less likely to notice mild to moderate head injuries right away. In fact, sometimes the signs for mild head injuries do not appear for hours or even days after the initial impact.
When the signs start to appear, they will also vary in intensity depending on the level of trauma suffered. Mild injuries often have equally mild symptoms, with the most common ranging from painful headaches to disorientation that lasts minutes.
How severe brain trauma manifests
On the other hand, with severe brain trauma, you will likely notice the impact immediately. Victims of this type of brain trauma will often suffer from unconsciousness, nausea or vomiting, excruciating headaches, lack of dexterity, trouble with balance, problems with fine motor skills and even loss of blood or cerebrospinal fluid from the ears or nose.
Victims also experience severe and disorienting confusion and may not even recognize their current location or the people they are with. This makes the scene chaotic for everyone involved, but it also serves as a major tip-off that someone should contact medical services immediately.
