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Law Office of Joseph R. Linnehan, Jr. Boston Personal Injury Attorney
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Internal Bleeding Can Be Deadly

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We all know that bleeding is a sign that something bad has happened and that we are severely injured. But can you bleed from the inside? You can, and internal bleeding in many ways is more dangerous than the external bleeding we all see and are used to.

Our Bodies Have Cavities

You may not be aware of this, but our bodies are not giant walking bags of blood. We don’t have blood filling the cavities and crevices inside our bodies. Our bodies are actually hollow, albeit, packed full of organs. The spaces between those organs are small, but they aren’t filled with blood.

Blood runs through our veins and arteries, and when we bleed, we aren’t spilling blood from inside of us, we are leaking blood from the veins and arteries that line our bodies.

Why Internal Bleeding is Dangerous

This is where internal bleeding comes in, and why it is so dangerous. When you bleed on the outside, it is bad, but you have only one problem to solve (in the short term): stop the bleeding. But when you bleed on the inside, there is nowhere for the blood to go. It fills the empty cavities in your body, and thus, puts pressure on your internal organs—sometimes, dangerously high pressure.

That pressure can lead to serious damage. This is the concept behind a brain bleed: the brain is bleeding with nowhere for the blood to go, because the brain is inside the skull. Trapped by the skull, the blood puts pressure on the brain, causing severe damage, and if untreated, death.

The other reason why internal bleeding is because it’s internal, it often can’t be seen, or even felt, until there is more serious damage. With an external bleed, you know it is happening. But an internal bleed may go undetected; in fact, it may be so small at first, that emergency room X-rays may not even pick up a small bleed immediately after an accident. Think of an internal bleed as a small crack in a pipe that drips a tiny bit of water; after some time, the water can flood an entire household if left untreated.

Causes and Symptoms

Anything that causes blunt force trauma, can cause an internal bleed. Crushing injuries, or slamming body parts against the inside parts of a car can lead to bleeding.

Some symptoms of internal bleeding may be deceptive, because they feel like symptoms of other, less serious injuries. Typical symptoms of an internal bleed include:

  • Low blood pressure
  • Confusion
  • Trouble breathing or shortness of breath
  • Severe weakness
  • Very serious bruising, in areas that may not be defined
  • Signs that seem like they are a stroke like confusion or difficulty speaking
  • Blood in stool or urine

Anytime there is a serious accident, family members should monitor victims, even if the emergency room has said that there isn’t anything that is appearing on scans or X-rays.

We understand the injuries that our clients sustain. Contact the skilled Boston personal injury lawyers at The Law Office of Joseph Linnehan, Jr. for help with your personal injury case.

Sources:

emedicinehealth.com/internal_bleeding/article_em.htm

medicalnewstoday.com/articles/320322.php

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