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New Jersey

Personal Injury Attorneys

Should you see a doctor for road rash?

On Behalf of | Feb 13, 2020 | Motor Vehicle Accidents |

When New Jersey motorcyclists get into crashes, they face severe injury. In fact, the injuries they face are often worse than injuries other drivers face. This is due to the nature of the uncovered, unprotected motorcycle. Today we will look at an injury common to motorcyclists: road rash.

VeryWell Health provides information about road rash and its varying levels of intensity. When a rider suffers from road rash, it is mild, moderate or severe. Most cases are mild. These are also the cases that do not need much medical help. In fact, many people treat mild road rash at home. Professionals suggest seeing a doctor at least once. This allows you to ensure that a doctor cleans it well and removes all debris. After that, home-based first-aid is often all that you need.

You should see a doctor right away for moderate to severe cases of road rash. These cases are often life-threatening. Even moderate cases of road rash may involve lacerations. They can tear through nerves and muscles. If you do not seek treatment, you could face permanent nerve damage. Scarring or disfigurement is also common.

Severe cases of road rash are often even worse. Lacerations often cut deep below layers of skin and fat, extending to the bone. A victim may have over 15 percent of the body’s skin scraped away. This leaves infection more than enough room to settle in. Infections often appear within 12 hours. Sometimes it includes severe issues like sepsis or gangrene. For these reasons, you should get road rash wounds seen by a professional.