According to the United States Department of Transportation, over six million car accidents occur each year. In the state of Florida, there are more than 350,000 drivers involved in an accident, resulting in more than 200,000 injuries. These are alarming statistics to say the least.

Florida drivers are more distracted than ever and car accidents can have a devastating impact on a victim’s life. Injuries caused by collisions often require surgery, so we wanted to create this infographic to teach you a little bit more about them.

Head-On Collisions and Knee Replacement Surgery

In a car accident, knee injuries are all too common. In a head-on collision for instance, the front of the car can be crushed and will end up impacting the driver and/or front passenger. Head-on collisions in Florida often cause serious leg injuries.

Your knee is a complex joint and impacts such as these can result in anything from a break or ACL tear, to a more traumatic injury. These more serious cases may require knee replacement surgery.

How Much Does Knee Replacement Surgery Cost?

On average, knee replacement surgery following a car accident will cost around $50,000. Keep in mind that this is only going to cover the cost of the orthopedic surgical procedure. After knee replacement surgery, you are going to need to invest in physical therapy for at least a few months.

Traumatic Brain Injuries

Similar to knee injuries, our surgical team see a lot of brain injuries as a result of car accidents here in Florida. These types of injuries can also range from mild to deadly depending on a range factors, such as a person’s overall health, age and the severity of the collision.

Keep in mind that even mild head injuries can result in medical costs totaling more than $80,000. Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) on the other hand can cost millions. In either case, these are significant injuries that can lead to devastating, long-term medical conditions if not properly treated.

Surgery to Relieve Intracranial Pressure After a Car Accident

Our surgical consultants urge our patients to keep this in mind because a brain injury can heal on its own without the need for surgical intervention. That being said, they will run the risk of fluid build-up or swelling in the brain. If a patient’s intracranial pressure becomes too high, then a surgical procedure will need to be performed in order to remove part of the skull and relieve that pressure.

Most cases of traumatic brain injury are the result of a rear-end collision in Florida. Unfortunately, these injuries don’t always produce physical indications that can be seen. So you’ll want to keep an eye out for behavioral cues that may indicate a TBI:

• Slurred speech
• Aggression
• Issues with short term memory
• Inability to stay focused
• Seizures
• Recurring headaches that are steadily getting worse
• Ringing in the ears (Tinnitus)

Back and Spinal Injuries

Spinal cord and back injuries are all too common following a car accident in Florida due to the brutal force exerted on a body during a collision like that. Some car accidents can knock discs and vertebrae completely out of place. The following types of back injuries are common in auto accidents:

• Herniated discs
• Spinal cord injury
• Compression fractures
• Spondylolisthesis 

While these conditions can be treated non-invasively, some will require surgery following an auto accident.

What Types of Neurological Surgeries Are Commonly Linked to Car Accidents?

Discectomy: During this procedure, the surgeon will remove the damaged portion of a herniated disc. This will relieve pain that has been caused due to significant pressure on the spine. How much does a discectomy cost to perform in Florida? This type of procedure can cost anywhere from $15,000 to $75,000. The significant price range is dependent on whether the patient will also need spinal fusion surgery as well.

Spinal Fusion Surgery: During this procedure, the surgeon will fuse the damaged vertebrae into a single, more stable section of bone. This can be a complex procedure and typically spinal fusions cost at least $100,000 when factoring in your physical rehabilitation and MRI scans. This is a serious operation and patients will typically need at least a few months to recover from it.

Kyphoplasty: During this procedure, a surgeon will puncture the patient’s skin and insert a medical-grade balloon using a fine needle into the damaged vertebra. This balloon is then inflated in order to create a hollow space which is then filled with special bone cement. The balloon is removed after the cement has been injected into the space. In Florida, a kyphoplasty procedure costs around $16,000.

(Note that there is a similar procedure called vertebroplasty that doesn’t require a balloon and is a little less expensive on average.)

Laminectomy: During this procedure, a surgeon will remove a specific portion of the patient’s vertebra known as the lamina. Laminectomies are used to relieve pain caused by spinal stenosis, a condition where the spinal cord narrows, applying excessive pressure on the nerves along the spinal column.

Surgery Required to Treat Lacerations?

Fortunately, modern cars are all built with tempered and safety glass windows. However, lacerations can still occur as a result of car accident. These types of injuries are most often caused during rear-end collisions when loose objects with edges are sent flying in the cabin of the vehicle.

These types of injuries can be very painful, but they don’t often require surgical intervention here in Florida. Most car accident victims with lacerations can be treated with bandages, antibiotics and/or stitches. In serious situations where a internal organs, arteries or tendons have been damaged, then such lacerations may need to be repaired surgically.

How About Broken Bones and Fractures?

Broken bones and fractures are also quite common in car accident victims, but they don’t always require surgery. Severe injuries may require surgical intervention and that will affect the cost of treatment as well as the length of recovery time needed. A broken arm that requires surgery may cost $16,000 or more, while the cost of a fractured hip can start at $40,000.

Do You Need Surgery for an Internal Injury?

If you have suffered an internal injury as a result of a car accident in Florida, then you should consider sitting down for a surgical consultation. Internal bleeding, crushed and/or punctured lungs are all very serious injuries, but it is not possible to provide an estimate here as to the associated surgical costs for an internal injury.

Car accident victims with internal injuries could require any number of surgeries and the associated costs can be significant. In any case, this is a situation where you will need to undergo diagnostic evaluation before we could tell you more.

Conclusion

If you have been injured in a car accident here in Florida, then you should immediately seek medical attention for your injuries. If surgery is recommended, then please fill out our online form to schedule a surgical consultation at one of our clinics in Florida. We employ only board certified surgeons and our team has over 70 years of combined experience. You can rest assured that you will be working with the best when you choose Florida Surgery Consultants.