Children are resilient. Injuries that may take months to heal for an older adult might only take weeks for a child. Just because their physical injuries may heal pretty quickly, it doesn’t mean that they are whole again. Even if their physical injuries heal completely, it doesn’t mean that they haven’t suffered permanent harm.
A traumatic incident, like an auto accident or a bicycle collision, could cause injuries that aren’t visible on the surface. One of these is post traumatic stress disorder, and the chance that a child could suffer this particular injury after a serious accident may be as high as 33 percent — according to a Swedish study.
The study was conducted at the University of Gothenburg’s Sahlgrenska Academy using data from bicycle-auto collisions involving a child. Out of all cases studied, a third of the children had been diagnosed with PTSD. One in five still suffered intellectual issues related to the crash a year later.
Another study conducted by the same research student and using survey data showed that 22 percent of children who were injured in a traffic accident also suffered psychosocial and mental complications that lasted at least a year. The study found no correlation between the intellectual trauma and the severity of the injury.
Health insurance may help cover a large portion of the injuries, but those aren’t the only damages that a parent may want to consider seeking compensation for after their child is injured. A personal injury lawsuit in Ocala can help compensate a victim for more than just the medical bills that the family incurs, and an attorney can advise families on all of their options.
Source: Red Orbit, “After An Injury, Many Children Can Be Affected By PTSD,” May 28, 2014
