What Body Parts Are Prone to Severe Injuries in a Motorcycle Accident?
Motorcycle accidents can be traumatizing, leading to life-altering injuries that can lead to permanent disability. Most of these injuries require long-term treatment and may take longer to resolve. If you get severe injuries in a motorcycle accident, it’s essential to understand the legal steps you can take to protect your rights.
Skilled attorneys from a personal injury law firm in Greenville can help you pursue compensation for the damages you suffer. Your compensation amount largely depends on the type and extent of injury. So, it helps to familiarize yourself with the most common motorcycle accident injuries and how they can impact your life in the short and long term.
Lower Limbs
Motorcycle riders involved in motorcycle accidents often suffer injuries to their lower extremities because of the exposed nature of their legs. A motorcycle weighs hundreds of pounds, and if it falls on a rider in an accident, it can crush the lower part of the body.
Motorcycle accident attorneys in Greenville say vulnerable parts include the ankles, feet, calves, and knees. Some injuries on the lower extremities that could lead to long-term disability include:
- Broken bones: If you sustain broken bones, you may require intensive surgery procedures and placement of rods, pins, screws, and other hardware. You may have to endure months of gruesome physical therapy. Depending on the nature and extent of the fractures, you may never completely recover or regain mobility.
- Road Rash: If you swerve to avoid an oncoming car, you could hit the ground and scrape your legs or other body parts along the road’s hard surface. The injury could be severe enough to require skin grafts, nerve damage, stubborn infections, and life-long scarring or disfigurement.
- Strains, sprains, and tears: Motorcycle accidents can cause sprains, strains, and tears to muscles, ligaments, and tendons. These can cause swelling, pain, and limited mobility, often requiring physical therapy and rehabilitative treatments.
Upper Extremities
In most motorcycle accidents, motorists are thrown off balance, ejected from their motorcycles, and thrust into the air. The common reflex is to use the arms to brace for a fall. A hard landing is likely to result in shoulder injuries and torn rotator cuffs. Broken arms and fingers are also common consequences, which can lead to permanent nerve damage.
In a severe force of impact, a victim could lose their limbs through amputation. This can happen when the accident severely damages a limb, and medical intervention is not sufficient to save it. In such cases, doctors may have to perform surgical amputations to save lives and prevent further damage.
Greenville motorcycle accident lawyers say other injuries that could affect the upper or lower extremities and possibly cause permanent damage, depending on the severity, are:
- Burns: Contact with hot surfaces, such as engines, scalding liquids, fires, or exhaust pipes, can cause severe burns that may lead to permanent scarring.
- Contusions: Bruises occur when blunt force trauma injures blood vessels under the skin, leading to discoloration, pain, and swelling.
- Lacerations: Deep cuts or tears in the skin can occur after contact with sharp objects or due to blunt force trauma. While minor ones can heal quickly, severe lacerations may require stitching, causing permanent scars.
Chest Area
The thorax comprises the heart, lungs, and other internal organs protected by the ribs. Blunt force trauma to the chest resulting from a motorcycle accident can cause internal bleeding. Internal organs can also suffer damage due to broken ribs that puncture a lung or lacerate a kidney, spleen, or liver.
In most motorcycle accidents, the lungs are particularly vulnerable and susceptible to bruising and collapse. Lung injuries often require surgery and ventilation. You could also be at risk of suffering a torn aorta, which can be fatal if not well-diagnosed and treated.
Head
Greenville personal injury attorneys explain that head injuries are some of the most catastrophic injuries a motorcyclist can suffer in an injury. Skull fractures and head trauma are common injuries among cyclists who are tossed from their vehicles and thrown on the road’s hard surface.
The injuries can be mild or severe, possibly causing permanent physical and mental disabilities. Common head injuries that motorcyclists suffer in these accidents include the following:
- Concussions
- Seizures
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Brain swelling
- Coma
- Hemorrhaging
Symptoms of head injuries or brain damage include anxiety, depression, confusion, disorientation, memory loss, and loss of motor skills and coordination. In most cases, brain damage causes permanent impairment. Depending on the extent of the impact, head injuries can lead to death.
Spine
Spine injuries also happen in motorcycle accidents and can have life-altering consequences. Damage to the spine can cause partial or complete paralysis and loss of mobility, depending on the position and severity of the injury. However, even less severe spine injuries can be the source of chronic pain over an extended period.
Motorcycle accident lawyers in Greenville highlight the following common symptoms of spine injuries:
- Numbness or tingling sensation in the extremities
- Severe pain radiating down the legs or back
- Difficulty standing upright or walking
Spinal cord injuries often require long-term medical care and the use of assistive medical devices. Treatment, therapy, and long-term care costs can spiral into several thousand dollars, so pursuing compensation from the at-fault party would be in your best interest.
A Skilled Personal Injury Lawyer Provides Insights into Motorcycle Accident Injuries That May Lead to Permanent Disability
You can sustain severe injuries that can result in long-term disability if you get involved in a motorcycle accident. It’s vital to use protective gear and observe safety measures when cycling to minimize the risk of getting into an accident and minimize the impact. If you sustain injuries, skilled lawyers can help you pursue compensation.
The Hammack Law Firm has knowledgeable Greenville motorcycle accident attorneys who can provide legal counsel after a motorcycle accident. You have a right to pursue compensation to cover medical and living costs after an accident. Trust us to fight for the total compensation you deserve. Call us at 864-766-7108 for a FREE consultation.
With over 25 years of legal experience, Paul Hammack provides his clients with a level of trial expertise and strategic insight rarely found in personal injury litigation. Having spent the first eight years of his career working within major insurance defense firms across Georgia and South Carolina, Paul gained an intimate understanding of the “other side’s” playbook. This insurance industry background serves as a unique differentiator for his clients; he knows exactly how insurance carriers evaluate risk and what motivates them to pay top dollar for a claim.
In 2008, Paul founded Hammack Law Firm to move away from the “plaintiff mill” model and focus on building personal relationships with those he represents. As a seasoned litigator, he has tried dozens of first-chair cases to verdict, specializing in high-stakes litigation involving catastrophic injuries and complex truck accidents. His dual-state practice allows him to provide aggressive representation across both South Carolina and Georgia, ensuring victims of negligence receive the maximum financial compensation possible regardless of which side of the state line the accident occurred.
Paul’s commitment to excellence is reflected in his record of significant achievements, including a $10 million tractor-trailer wrongful death settlement and a $3.9 million moped-versus-truck recovery. His credentials and bar admissions in both South Carolina and Georgia underscore his deep roots in the regional legal community. Beyond the courtroom, Paul is a dedicated advocate for his local community, contributing his time and resources to organizations such as the United Way, Red Cross, and Hands On Greenville, all while working to make South Carolina a safer place for everyone.
