When Georgia residents receive facial traumas in a car accident, they may suffer from a jaw fracture or a dislocation. These painful injuries require weeks of recovery time and possible surgical intervention. Jaw fractures may also include other associated problems that can be serious. A dislocation of the jaw involves the person's jaw being moved out of its sockets. Generally, people who suffer from a dislocated jaw will suffer severe pain. Doctors normally can use their fingers to move the jaw back into its place. Victims may then need to have their jaws taped and wired shut in order to prevent them from opening their mouths very wide. Recovery time for a dislocated jaw typically takes a period of about six weeks. Fractured jaws are more serious and involve breaking of the bones making up the jaw itself. Those whose jaws have been fractured may require surgery to insert pins to piece…

Georgia residents might benefit from learning more about breastbone injuries that can occur as a result of a car crash. The technical term for this type of injury is a sternum fracture. The sternum, or breastbone, is the bone along the midline of the chest that is attached to the rib bones by cartilage forming the front portion of the rib cage. The function of the rib cage is to protect major blood vessels and vital organs from being damaged by physical trauma. Research shows that women are more susceptible to suffering a sternum fracture than men. Studies also determined that people over age 50 face an increased risk of suffering a breastbone injury while children are far less likely. Approximately 60 to 90 percent of all sternum fractures are attributable to auto accidents. These injuries are usually caused by not wearing seatbelts or a lack of air bag protection.…

A man in Georgia was killed in a two-car accident that took place on Feb. 28. Before the crash, the 71-year-old victim was driving a sports car in Marietta. While the man was traveling westbound, another driver cut him off while the sports car was trying to make a turn. The car accident occurred after the victim had slowed his vehicle to turn left. When the victim began to turn, a 45-year-old man driving an SUV drove up behind him and crossed the centerline. The driver of the SUV then entered the opposite lanes of traffic and struck the front-left side of the victim's sports car. The impact of the collision caused both of the vehicles to end up in a residential yard that was close to the roadway. Both of the drivers were transported to Wellstar Kennestone Hospital after the crash. The older man died at the hospital, while…

Police in Georgia are investigating a Feb. 25 car accident that resulted in the deaths of two people and sent a third to the hospital. The accident occurred at about 4:30 p.m. on Old Clyattville Road in Valdosta. A Ford Mustang driven by a 22-year-old woman from Florida was traveling southbound on Old Clyattville Road at the time of the accident. A Ford F-150 traveling in the northbound lane attempted to pass a northbound school bus and collided head-on with the Mustang about two miles away from Interstate 75. The 22-year-old woman and her passenger, a 23-year-old Valdosta man, died as a result of their injuries. Emergency crews took the F-150's driver, a 34-year-old Valdosta man, to South Georgia Medical Center in Valdosta in serious condition. No passengers were aboard the school bus, and no one else suffered any injuries in the accident. A reconstruction team continued to investigate the…

Drivers in Georgia and the rest of the United States face the same roadway risks associated with distracted drivers. Mobile tablet or smartphone use by someone behind the wheel creates a serious distraction that has been linked to car accidents. Data reviewed by the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveal facts about the hazards of driver distractions. From 2011 to 2012, the number of people injured in distracted driver accidents increased by 9 percent from 387,000 to 421,000. The year 2012 also saw 3,328 deaths in similar crashes. In 2011, distracted driving caused 17 percent of car accidents in which a person was injured. The CDC defines sources of distraction in three ways: visual, manual, or cognitive. Texting and driving are especially dangerous because the activity causes all three types of distraction. Texting makes the driver take his or her eyes off the road, remove one or both…

Many Georgia drivers become involved in car accidents. While some accidents are minor, others could result in serious injuries. However, there are certain ways that a driver or other vehicle occupants may reduce the risk of common accident injuries. Common injuries that could leave a person temporarily or permanently disabled include head, neck, and brain injuries. A person may suffer a face, head, or brain injury if a collision causes the person's head to come into contact with a sharp or blunt object, such as a piece of glass from the windshield or the dashboard. These types of injuries can be prevented by properly installed front and side airbags. Additionally, people should try to wrap their arms around their head to form an emergency helmet. Other common crash injuries include neck, back, and leg injuries. Neck injuries can include whiplash and damage to the spinal cord. Back injuries can also…

A Calhoun woman has received an indictment after a May 23 car accident that allegedly involved drunk driving and killed a pedestrian. The Gordon County grand jury issued the indictment after a 50-year-old woman struck a 65-year-old woman in a residential neighborhood while the victim was at a mailbox. According to the deceased's daughter, her mother, who was from Augusta, went to the mailbox at around 11:30 a.m. The woman was on the side of the road at the mailbox on Blackwood Place when a Dodge Neon SXT struck her. The Dodge arrived on Blackwood from Ga. Highway 53, and a Georgia State Patrol's incident report indicated that the vehicle was traveling at a fast speed. After the impact, the pedestrian sent her about 52 feet into the air. The Augusta woman was airlifted to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga but died at the hospital. After the crash, the Dodge traveled…

Regardless of how good a Georgia driver is, he or she cannot control what other drivers do. Sudden changes by others can lead to dangerous situations that increase the risk of an accident. This is generally true even if the driver has time to anticipate what others are doing on the highway. However, there are technologies that may enable vehicles to take some of the guesswork out of driving. These technologies work by alerting the driver of changing conditions and may even help the car take action to stop by itself. Automatic braking and other speed-limiting technologies may help drivers avoid rear-end collisions, while lane-departure warnings can help drivers avoid accidents while changing lanes. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, these technologies are not always standard in vehicles. In some cases, they are not even required to help a vehicle meet safety requirements. The National Transportation Safety Board…

A multi-vehicle traffic accident on the evening of Nov. 6 left one woman dead and another person injured in Dougherty County. A third man involved in the collision received a traffic citation and may face additional criminal charges related to the fatal crash as well. According to information released by investigators with the Dougherty County Police, the three-car accident occurred at approximately 8:30 p.m. at the intersection of Liberty Expressway and Holly Drive in Albany. Witnesses claim the 43-year-old Mitchell County woman driving a black Volkswagen Beetle was stopped at a red light when her vehicle was rear-ended by a red van driven by a 72-year-old Montgomery County man. The force of the impact then caused the Volkswagen to strike another black vehicle in front of it driven by a 34-year-old Ocklocknee's Ford woman. Bystanders rushed to assist the victims, pulling the 34-year-old woman from her vehicle, but they found…

A married couple traveling south on Interstate 75 near Adairsville suffered fatal injuries after their vehicle was rear-ended on the highway. According to authorities, the Oct. 30 accident occurred around 9 p.m. Reportedly, that is when a 2008 BMW struck the rear of the couple's 2004 Ford Explorer, causing the SUV to careen down an embankment adjacent to the roadway. Officials at the scene of the crash declared both the husband and the wife dead. The driver of the BMW, a 50-year-old man, was detained following the crash on suspicion of impaired driving. According to the Georgia State Patrol, multiple charges may be filed against the man. If the GSP investigation were to reveal that the driver of the BMW was in fact intoxicated at the time of the incident involving the married couple, then he may face more than just criminal repercussions. In addition, he might also be named…