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All it takes is two seconds to turn your life upside down. Suddenly, a routine trip to childcare or a fun outing with your little one turns into a nightmare. Seeing your precious child in a hospital bed after a serious Maryland car accident is one of the most heart-wrenching experiences any parent can have.
You desperately want to take away their pain, but all you can do is hold and comfort them while they cry. It’s a helpless feeling, and unfortunately, this is likely just the beginning of your little one’s road to recovery. Serious accidents involving small children often end in big injury that require months of rehabilitation.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration conducted a 2010 study on motor vehicle accidents involving children under age 8. That study showed that:
- Head injuries are the most common injury sustained by young children in car accidents.
- Children under age 1 are more likely to suffer a head or chest injury in a crash than are children ages 2–7.
- Children ages 2–7 are more likely to suffer injury to the lungs, while infants are more likely to sustain a rib fracture.
- Unrestrained children are eight times more likely to suffer serious injury than those in a child restraint system.
- Children are more likely than adults to suffer long-lasting problems from head trauma.
Head trauma in particular is a serious injury that can greatly affect your child’s future. This is especially true of young children whose brains are not fully developed. According to the NHTSA study, some neurological problems may not even be obvious until years after the accident. For example:
- Damage to the frontal lobes, which control interpersonal and social skills, may not be manifest until adolescence.
- Reading and writing problems may not be evident until the child has reached school age.
If you believe your child may have suffered head trauma or other serious injury after a Maryland car accident, you should talk to an attorney who can help you put together a medical care plan to ensure that your child’s future medical needs are covered. For a free consultation, call the experienced Rockville car accident lawyers of Nickelsporn and Lundin at 800-875-9700.