CHICAGO, IL – If you have car accident injuries after a Chicago car accident, it’s important to seek medical attention immediately. This is one situation in which you do not want to wait and see if you can improve. Even if you don’t notice symptoms immediately, you should have a medical professional examine you after experiencing a significant car crash.
Onset of Symptoms
You might not notice any injuries at the accident scene because of the adrenaline coursing through your system or because trauma can cause hidden wounds. A person could be bleeding internally in their abdomen or brain and not have any specific symptoms until they’re in a medical crisis.
Trauma care specialists have training in what injuries to look for after a person has been in a motor vehicle accident. Some people have reported their broken bones didn’t develop apparent symptoms for a day or two, but feeling a general discomfort they’re not able to pinpoint at first.
Medical Records are Essential
Here are a few reasons why you’ll want to get prompt medical treatment. Your medical records become part of your car accident injury claim for these purposes:
- Unbiased third-party evidence of the extent of your injuries. A jury will have a hard time believing you didn’t seek medical treatment for severe injuries. Instead, they will likely suspect you’re exaggerating how badly you got hurt.
- Links your injuries to the crash if you go for a medical evaluation and treatment right away. When a person waits a few days or longer to get a medical examination after a Chicago collision, the defendant will allege that the person got injured in some other event, not the motor vehicle crash.
- Shows your medical treatment costs. The medical expenses you incurred for your treatment will be a significant factor in calculating the amount of your compensation in the personal injury case. Pain and suffering can also take the amount of your medical bills.
- Lists the types of medical treatment you had to endure because of your injuries. A jury is more likely to award a substantial sum to a plaintiff who required surgery to treat their injuries. The discomfort of the medical procedures will be a part of your personal injury case.
- Establish the treatment plan and that you followed and completed the doctor’s prescribed treatment. It’s essential to finish your prescribed treatment, such as physical therapy. We understand how inconvenient and unpleasant medical treatment can be, but it can provide the best chance of optimal healing.
- Reduces the defendant’s likelihood of arguing that you should get less money for your claim because you could have healed better. You must show you did everything you reasonably could to get better.
- Identifies complications you suffered, including infections or allergic reactions. Although the negligent party who caused the car crash didn’t directly cause you to develop an infection or another side effect, you would not have had the complications had it not been for the collision.
- Describes how well you healed and any residual impairments. It’s powerful evidence if your doctor or other treating medical professionals confirm that you have lingering problems like chronic pain, loss of function, weakness or other impairments from your wounds.
Waiting Too Long Could Lead to Side Effects
Bones might heal out of proper alignment and require surgery later to realign them. Although the fracture might have healed properly if immobilized right away, using the fractured area could pull the broken parts of the bone out of alignment.
The patient needs immediate treatment with an open fracture to reduce the likelihood of an infection. An open fracture is a broken bone that pierces the skin. You don’t have to have an open fracture to develop an infection after a car collision. Any open wound could develop an infection if not promptly and properly cared for.
Illinois Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury Cases
Years after an automobile accident, problems like arthritis could set in at the location of your crash wound and leave you miserable. Under Illinois law, you generally have two years to file a lawsuit that asks for an award of monetary damages from the at-fault party. By the time later issues like arthritis develop, it will likely be too late to take legal action for compensation. This is why it’s critical to seek medical attention if you or a loved one has suffered injuries in a Chicago car accident.
Seeking Legal Counsel in Chicago
A personal injury attorney from the Dinizulu Law Group would be happy to talk to you about your injury claim from a Chicago car accident. You only have a limited amount of time to pursue a lawsuit for your car accident. Call the Dinizulu Law Group today for guidance on your rights, insurance filing requirements and legal options toward damage compensation by calling (312) 384-1920.
