Car accidents can create a lot of inconveniences in the lives of all who are involved. There is stress about fixing the car, insurance coverage, etc. But most of all, you are left with injuries that can seriously upset your life.
While major injuries are obvious, and you can gauge the type of medical assistance you’d need, minor ones are the most confusing. Often, after an accident, you would not feel any pain due to the secretion of adrenaline, a hormone that masks the pain for a while. And when the pain shows up, often after days or weeks, you will visit a doctor only to find hidden injuries.
Particularly, neck and back injuries that are so common in car accidents must be immediately treated by a reputed orthopedic center of Florida to avoid complications later on. Here are a few reasons to see an orthopedic immediately after a car accident in Florida.
1. To Get Expert Solutions
Most primary care physicians refer their patients directly to orthopedic specialists because they are the experts in treating the time-sensitive and difficult-to-diagnose injuries typically resulting from car crashes. Apart from broken bones, orthopedic specialists also treat sprains, strains, torn muscles and ligaments.
People often shrug off a lot of the symptoms that show after a car accident. Symptoms like headaches, swelling, bruising, knee pain, stiffness, or shoulder and neck pain are easy to ignore till they grow into something major.
Expert orthopedic specialists use modern, state-of-the-art equipment and practices to gauge the severity of your condition and create a recovery plan suited for your specific condition. Early treatment by an orthopedic after a car accident can involve different types of tests, such as X-rays, CT scans, and MRI, to find out the extent of your damage. The treatment plan ensures relief now and prevents further complications.
Symptoms often overlooked, such as confusion, trouble talking, or sleepiness, are all symptoms of a concussion that can result from a car accident. Expert orthopedics look for all symptoms that might be present and develop a treatment plan accordingly, which is not likely to be done by primary care physicians, not because they are inept, but because of their lack of experience in treating such cases.
2. To Prevent Degenerative Diseases
The injuries you get in a car accident can often trigger or complicate pre-existing or long-term degenerative diseases. These conditions may include degenerative disc disease, concussion, arthritis, head, neck, and back trauma, etc.
All of these pre-existing conditions can be retriggered or aggravated by a car accident and, if left untreated, can develop into complex problems. For instance, weakened or damaged discs in the spine can gradually form bone spurs if left untreated as the body attempts to compensate for the pressure caused by weakened discs. These spurs can impinge the spine over time and cause damage to nerves, resulting in pain or numbness.
Timely treatment by an expert medical service assistance can help you prevent these conditions from forming.
3. To Treat Serious Injuries
This is the most obvious reason for visiting an orthopedic after a car accident in Florida. But this is so relevant that it cannot be excluded from the list of reasons. Car crashes often result in broken bones, sore muscles, and torn tissues, which can result in a lot of pain and discomfort. Only an expert treatment by an orthopedic specialist can successfully diagnose the extent of the injuries and fix them for you. Serious injuries can disrupt daily workflow to a great extent. Timely intervention by an orthopedic can save you from pain and help you get back to your normal life faster and with greater efficiency.
4. To Properly Document the Injuries
If you are injured in an accident, you must seek medical attention within 14 days from the date of the accident to qualify for PIP insurance benefits in Florida. That’s another reason why getting yourself checked by a qualified orthopedic specialist is so important after a car accident. An expert orthopedic will diagnose you properly and document all the findings that can be used as evidence that the reason for those injuries is the accident only. Having all the documents ready will increase the chances of your attorney seeking a successful claim.
5. To Get Rid of the Pain
Too often, people avoid visiting an orthopedic and try to tough it out by themselves. They often fear something bad will come up if diagnosed, or they believe they can live with their symptoms and rather struggle through it alone than receive help.
But ignoring problems won’t make them go away. It’s true that sometimes you need surgery to get cured of the injuries, but more often than not, some non-invasive treatments can also help you relieve the symptoms. It’s possible that just gentle stretching, applying ice, physical therapy, OTC pain medications, or epidural steroid injections will be enough to help you get rid of the pain symptoms.
6. To Improve Your Quality of Life
As with any visit to a medical specialist, a trip to an orthopedic ultimately aims at improving the quality of your life and promoting long-term health. Even light symptoms from a car accident can be difficult to deal with. However, bruises, swells, soreness, stiffness, and aches are everyday symptoms, and we often do not think of consulting an orthopedic right away. But treating these symptoms promptly will help improve the day-to-day quality of your life greatly.
Proper guidance and treatment from orthopedic doctors will not only resolve pain but also help you prevent future injuries. Also, expert intervention by a trusted orthopedic center of Florida can lower the recovery time to a great extent, and you can get back to your usual life quickly.
Conclusion
Car accidents can result in injuries of different types and be painful and troublesome to deal with. Timely intervention by a qualified orthopedic can help you get cured fast and develop proper documentation, which can help you make a successful claim. Mentioned above are the six major reasons why you need to visit an orthopedic specialist immediately after an accident. Hope the information provided above helps you make an informed and, of course, a quick decision about visiting an orthopedic after you’ve been in a car accident in Florida.
