Even though today’s cars are safer than ever, motor vehicle accidents continue to injure an alarming number of Americans every single year. Unfortunately, one of the more catastrophic injuries anyone can suffer in a car crash is internal decapitation.
Decapitation happens when the head detaches from the body, usually as the result of trauma. With internal decapitation, the head stays on the body even though major ligaments in the neck have broken. Broken ligaments, though, cause the brain and spinal column to detach from each other.
A catastrophic injury
According to a clinical study in the Spine Journal, internal decapitation used to be almost always fatal. That has changed recently, though. In fact, if a person can receive prompt care at a Level 1 trauma center, his or her odds of surviving are better than ever. Still, because internal decapitation is a catastrophic injury, recovering completely continues to be unlikely.
A new way of life
If you have internal decapitation, you are likely to spend months or longer in the hospital. Then, you might need to live in a rehabilitation facility. Still, if you have paralysis, brain damage or other complications, you eventually may have little choice but to try to adjust to a new way of life. Doing so, of course, can require modifying your home, hiring a home nurse and using other modifications.
As you probably suspect, recovering from internal decapitation and dealing with its aftermath can be expensive propositions. Ultimately, to ensure you have everything you need to thrive, it may be necessary to seek financial compensation from the at-fault driver or drivers.