No, a car accident doesn’t directly cause sleep apnea, but certain accident-related injuries can contribute to the development of sleep apnea or the worsening of sleep-related breathing problems. This is more likely with traumatic brain injuries or damage to the airway.
If you developed sleep apnea after a car accident, don’t hesitate to call Jones & Swanson. Our Marietta car accident lawyers will investigate how the crash happened, review your medical records, work with medical providers, and pursue the compensation you deserve.
A Collision Might Affect Your Sleep in Ways You Did Not Expect
Sleep apnea is a serious medical condition involving repeated interruptions in a person’s ability to breathe while sleeping. If you’ve never experienced sleep-related breathing problems before, getting diagnosed with sleep apnea after a crash naturally raises an important question of whether sleep apnea can be caused by a car accident.
While a car accident generally doesn’t cause sleep apnea directly, it’s understandable to want to connect the crash to your newfound symptoms. Since every situation is different, your medical evidence can help determine if there’s a connection between the collision and your condition.
It is not enough to establish that you were involved in a crash and later received a sleep apnea diagnosis. Your claim will require evidence that connects the condition to injuries or changes associated with the collision, such as:
- A traumatic brain injury
- Injuries affecting the neck or cervical spine
- Airway damage
- Other consequences of the crash
For example, research has identified an association between traumatic brain injuries and sleep disorders, including sleep apnea, although researchers continue to study the precise relationship between the two.
At Jones & Swanson, we will focus on deciphering whether the evidence supports a connection between your condition and the accident.
Medical Evidence Can Help Establish Causation
Causation is often one of the central issues when someone seeks damages for a condition that developed after an accident. A medical provider will evaluate the condition from a healthcare perspective.
At Jones & Swanson, our attorneys will use the available medical evidence to build the legal claim surrounding that condition.
Sleep studies are helpful because they provide objective information about breathing interruptions during sleep and the severity of the disorder. Medical evidence that could be important in your case includes:
- Records from emergency room visits or urgent care appointments after the collision
- Imaging studies involving the head, neck, or spine
- Records documenting a traumatic brain injury
- Medical records describing new sleep-related symptoms
- Referrals to a sleep medicine provider
- Results from a sleep study or other diagnostic testing
- Physician opinions about the relationship between the accident and your sleep disorder
- Records showing treatment recommendations and ongoing care
A medical opinion should address the medical reasoning behind the relationship between the collision, the injuries, and the sleep disorder. When you contact Jones & Swanson, we will defend you when an insurance company questions causation.
Preexisting Conditions Do Not Automatically End Your Claim
One of the concerns injured people often have is what happens if they had health issues before the crash. For example, suppose you occasionally snored before the collision but never received a sleep apnea diagnosis. However, after the accident:
- Your symptoms become much worse.
- Your doctor orders a sleep study.
- You receive a sleep apnea diagnosis.
In this case, it will be important for Jones & Swanson to show what the accident did to your condition. Your medical history will need to be examined carefully. Records from before the collision could help establish your baseline, while post-accident records can show how your symptoms changed.
This is another reason not to assume that a preexisting issue makes a claim impossible. A thorough review of your medical history can reveal a distinction between a condition that existed before the collision and a condition that was caused or aggravated by the collision.
Your attorney will work with the available medical evidence to present that history accurately rather than leaving an insurance company to characterize it for you.
Georgia Law Has a Deadline for Personal Injury Lawsuits
Georgia has a statute of limitations that applies to personal injury actions. Under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33, personal injury lawsuits generally must be brought within two years after the right of action accrues, subject to exceptions and other legal rules.
A sleep apnea diagnosis that develops after a collision can create additional questions about these details:
- When symptoms appeared
- When the condition was identified
- How it relates to the underlying injury
Those questions should be addressed with your attorney rather than waiting until the filing deadline approaches. Because some exceptions exist to the statute of limitations, you should not assume that the general two-year period applies to your case.
For that reason, seeking legal advice from Jones & Swanson as soon as possible means your lawyer will have enough time to investigate the collision, obtain records, identify relevant witnesses, and determine the deadlines that apply to your particular claim.
If You Developed Sleep Apnea After a Car Accident, Call Jones & Swanson for Legal Advice
At Jones & Swanson, our attorneys understand that people who contact us are usually trying to recover while simultaneously handling legal matters in the aftermath of a collision. However, you don’t have to figure everything out by yourself.
Instead, let Jones & Swanson take on your case and advocate for your rights. As a local Marietta law firm, our lawyers apply a personal approach to every case. Serving the community since 1995, we’ve won over $50 million for our clients.
As lawyers with more than 50 years of combined experience, we are ready to investigate your claim, communicate with the insurance company, and pursue the compensation you deserve. Call us today to discuss your car accident case.
