The field of construction is full of numerous risks and dangers that most people who enter the workforce understand.
However, some of the more obscure risks often end up glossed over, leaving workers unprepared for the potential devastation they can cause. Crush injuries can and often do fall into this category.
Defining a crush injury
Medline Plus talks about crush injuries. These injuries occur when a large and/or heavy object ends up crushing any part of the human body.
Examples of a crush injury range pretty widely. It can cover mechanical incidents such as a worker’s hand getting caught and crushed in a conveyor belt. It can cover accidents such as a coworker running over someone’s foot with a truck. It can even cover natural disasters such as an earthquake leading to a scaffolding collapsing on someone walking underneath.
The difference medical attention makes
Crush injuries need immediate medical attention, as every sort of crush injury is a severe one no matter how small it may seem. It is important to get medics on scene as fast as possible, as they can carefully extract victims from their situation while doing as little damage as possible.
The treatment for crush injuries will differ significantly depending on how severe the injury is, along with its location, among other factors. In some cases, amputation is necessary. Tissue removal may also occur. Skin grafts and even organ transplants may later be necessary depending on the amount of damage done.
Of course, the faster medical aid gets dispensed, the less likely these severe outcomes will occur. But it is still important to note that crush injuries often result in lasting complications regardless due to their overall intensity.