A
low impact auto accident is generally defined as an incident that takes
place at speeds less than 10 miles per hour (mph). This type of
collision usually causes the least amount of damage to the vehicles
involved. Body injuries can result from any accident and that includes
ones that occur with vehicles going less than 10 mph. Soft tissue
injuries are the most common problem for those involved in a low impact
accident.
A motor vehicle accident that takes place at speeds
between under 10 mph often brings about little visible damage to the
cars involved. Sometimes due to the fact that minimal damage was done to
vehicle the injuries to the people in the vehicles are overlooked. This
does not mean that bodily injury did not occur to the passengers during
the crash.
While an automobile is built to take a slow 5 to 10
mph crash that is not necessarily true for your body. In a low impact
accident a person’s soft tissue can be damaged.The back and neck are the
usual problem spots for soft tissue injuries. Soft tissue is basically a
person’s ligaments, tendons and muscles. Soft tissue injuries are
typically classified as contusions or bruises, sprains or strains.
A
contusion is an injury to the soft tissue caused by blunt force. This
force produces pooling of blood around the injury causing discoloring of
the skin. This is commonly is referred to as a bruise. Bruising can be
found in different shapes and colors.
A sprain is an injury to a
ligament often brought about by a wrench or twist. A sprain can be a
simple sprain, a partial tear or a complete tear. This can happen to
various parts of a person’s body during an accident. It is not uncommon
for a person to twist in their seat as a vehicle strikes theirs during
the incident.
A strain is an injury to the muscle or tendon
caused by overuse, force or stretching. The force of the car crash can
push on a person’s soft tissue or cause parts to stretch in an abnormal
way.Muscles and tendons support your bones. A strain may cause a partial
or complete tear in the muscle and tendon combination.
The neck
of a car occupant can whip forward causing the most common rear impact
injury known as whiplash. General Motors (GM) did a study regarding
crashes at speeds below eight mph. GM found, to no surprise, that
injuries do occur at such low speeds. The study also showed that
whiplash injuries account for more than half of all injuries connected
to vehicular accidents.
Although these types of injuries are
characteristically classified as minor nearly 30 percent of those hurt
in low speed collisions have reported having neck pain up to three years
later. This injury is likely to be worse in those that experienced a
rear end collision. Depending on the age of the person this injury could
cause a permanent disability.
A motor vehicle can take the force
of a low speed collision without showing much damage due to the
advances car manufacturers have made in the construction of their
vehicles. When a collision does occur the force of the accident pushes
inertia somewhere and once the automobile has taken part of that energy
away the occupants take the rest. These forces are what can cause people
bodily harm even in a crash of below 10 mph.Soft tissue injuries can
occur to those involved in a low speed impact and though these injuries
might be hard to see they exist.
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