What Are Catastrophic Injuries And How Are They Treated

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Suffering from any injury may be very traumatic, but having a catastrophic injury may make the recovery process more challenging.

Injuries of any kind may need extensive surgery, medical procedures, medication, or therapy for recovery, and these could all be costly. Contacting a lawyer for legal advice could assist in these situations as they may help you with a claim towards these expenses.

If another party is involved, the communication between the parties in terms of what happened and the liability of each party concerning what happened could be established by a legal representative.

To know what options would be available, we would need to understand what a catastrophic injury is and how it could be treated:

What Is A Catastrophic Injury?

These injuries are usually classified as life-changing events in a person’s life because of an injury sustained from an accident or any other means.

Catastrophic injuries could be very serious and may lead to permanent disability. These could include amputations, brain injuries, spinal injuries, burns, or other injuries that the person would have to endure months or years of treatments to recover from it.

In many cases, these injuries also cause loss of income or ability to perform tasks that the person could do before the injury. The person may also require assistance or life-long care. You can visit https://www.joestephenslaw.com/ for more legal advice from a reputable law firm like  could assist in gaining greater clarity on this definition.

Treatment Options Available

There are wide series of treatment options for catastrophic injury victims after an accident to recover from one completely:

  1. Surgery

Undergoing surgery may be required to attach broken bones, graft skin, or any other invasive procedure needed to assist with the injuries. Surgery would be the first option to consider by medical professionals where recovery would occur.

Surgery doesn’t come without risks, as complications like blood clots may occur. In the efforts of the surgical team to save the patient’s life, there may be other secondary damages or losses, especially to nerves. Surgeons will do their utmost best, and although secondary complications could be rare, they are something to keep in mind.

Surgeries could be expensive due to the state-of-the-art equipment used as well as the many worker-hours that surgeons spend performing the surgeries.

  1. Medication

Your doctor may provide pain relief, mood regulation, or seizure prevention to prevent infection. And there are many different factors to be considered to prescribe the correct combination of medications for each individual’s needs. Medication could be used acutely or in the moment while treatment is ongoing or as a chronic treatment for certain conditions.

Chronic medication options may have an impact on other body systems and should continuously be monitored, making this long-term use fairly expensive in terms of follow-up procedures.

  1. Physical Therapy

After a catastrophic injury, patients may have to attend physical therapy to assist mobility and range of motion. This type of therapy will focus on getting the patient up and moving around again. Strength training and building muscles could be one of the primary tasks for the physical therapist.

They could also assist with breathing exercises to help strengthen the lungs and diaphragm. Removing phlegm from the airways to assist with breathing could include suctioning, which the physical therapist would also assist.

Successful treatment requires multiple sessions until improvement is seen. Patients would be required to practice some of these skills at home as well.

  1. Occupational Therapy

While physical therapy helps the patient strengthen muscles and gain function after the injury, occupational therapy may assist the patient in performing daily tasks and activities.

After regaining function, patients may have to be retrained for certain activities due to loss of a limb, range of motion because of burns, or nerve damage causing loss of feeling.

The new skills learned would have to be done at home, as repetition would be key to getting the functions back to normal.

  1. Mental Health Check-Ups

Sustaining such a serious injury may require regular visits to a mental health professional. The emotional impact of having a catastrophic injury may weigh heavily on the injured person. Regular sessions may minimize the mental health complications arising from these situations.

The most common reaction initially is depression, and it would have to be attended to so it does not escalate into a more serious situation. Grieving is another reaction that may be observed with the injured person and their families. Having a mental health professional’s support throughout the process may make it easier for everyone involved.

Again, regular sessions would have to be attended to get the maximum benefits from the process.

In Conclusion

Devastating accidents with catastrophic injuries could turn someone’s whole world upside down. Long-term medical treatment needed for the injury may take a toll on the mental health of the whole family, especially if special care is needed after the patient is discharged, but finding the best care may result in a speedy recovery.