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Posted in Motorcycle Accidents,Our Blog on June 29, 2018
Easy riding. The open road. Motorcycles have a mystique all their own. But whether you are an everyday rider, a weekend adventurer or take only an occasional ride on Louisiana’s roads and highways, you need to ride vigilantly, defensively and always wearing your protective gear.
It may surprise you to know that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it takes more skill to operate a motorcycle than to operate a car or other passenger vehicle. You have an 80 percent risk of injury or death should you crash. Live Strong reports that although your helmet can reduce your death risk by upwards of 35 percent, you still risk serious injuries, the most common of which are the following:
Head injuries
Even if you wear a proper helmet while riding, your head still is at risk. The impact of your head hitting the road, ground or other hard surface in a crash can result in your brain swaying violently back and forth inside your skull, severely injuring itself in the process. This is the definition of a traumatic brain injury, a fearsome accident that causes your brain to dysfunction in some manner. It can take you months to recover from a “mild” TBI, and a more severe one could result in permanent disability.
Bone fractures
Since your cycle cannot stand upright on its own, it falls over when you crash. Often it traps your leg underneath, resulting in a fracture. Broken legs represent the most common type of motorcycle injury, but you can also break the following parts of your body:
Road rash
Obviously your cycle does not encase your body the way in which a car does. Consequently, virtually all parts of your body come into contact with the road when you crash, and this is why wearing the proper protective clothing is so important. Without it, you stand a good chance of suffering road rash, the most minor of which is first-degree where the abrasion does not actually break your skin. A second-degree road rash, however, breaks your skin while leaving your underlying tissues intact. The most serious road rash is third-degree, where the abrasion not only breaks your skin, but also exposes the fat and tissue layers underneath. You require immediate emergency medical help with this type of injury.
This information is educational in nature, not legal advice.