Crush injuries occur when a part of the victim’s body gets crushed, compressed, pinned, run over or otherwise smashed or squashed by a larger or heavier object.
These injuries are almost always moderate to severe in nature, and require quick treatment. But what else should you know about crush injuries?
How crush injuries happen
Up To Date discusses crush injuries that workers may suffer from. These crush injuries can come from many different sources. In fields of construction or other jobs that involve heavy machinery, any of these pieces of equipment can lead to an accident, for example.
However, many jobs have heavy objects or involve the use of cars. These alone are often enough to cause crush injuries among those outside of the construction field.
Two types of crush injuries
Crush injuries often get divided into two categories, too: injuries to the trunk and injuries to the limbs or extremities. The latter are often more common due to the fact that hands and feet end up crushed quite often, such as if a person drives over someone else’s foot or if a hand gets caught in machinery.
The risks to these types of injuries differ. Crush injuries to the extremities often involve a high risk of tissue death, necrosis, gangrene and other infections that could lead to amputation. On the other hand, organ failure serves as the biggest risk for torso crush injuries as the body struggles to make up for organs that cannot currently do their job.
These extreme dangers serve as the main reason why it is so important to get immediate medical attention, which can prevent long-term damage or even death.
