The study, which was performed by the University of Aberdeen School of Medicine and Dentistry, examined 2,069 participants that had given information regarding musculoskeletal pain. Of the 2,069 participants, 241 had reported a new onset of chronic pain. Further research revealed that the people that had disclosed being in an auto accident were 84% more likely to develop chronic pain than the other participants.

This is an alarming statistic for Colorado residents. Colorado has, on average, 30,000 car accidents every year. Many of these traffic accidents result in personal injury or wrongful death. This is especially true of Denver and Colorado Springs, where the increased population means an increase in auto accidents. These residents are at an increased risk of being involved in a car accident, and subsequently, at an increased risk of experiencing chronic pain and exacerbated injuries as a result.

For those unfortunate enough to find themselves having recently been in a car accident, it’s important to take precautions and not to act hastily. It’s also a good idea to hire an attorney. Experienced lawyers know what your claim is worth and are familiar with the commonality of recurring chronic pain, while insurance companies will try to get you to settle quickly and for pennies on the dollar. Attorneys will fight to compensate you for the injuries and damages that you’ve sustained.

You should contact our experienced personal injury law firm as quickly as possible after the accident. Try to document the accident with both the police and your doctors, and avoid signing statements or papers.

More Advice from Denver auto accident attorneys

Whether it is an auto accident or any other type of injury; try to document the accident with both the police and your physicians, and avoid speaking with anyone from the liability insurance company. Make sure you write down all of the pertinent dates and be certain to preserve all of your evidence. This includes obtaining photographs of the injuries, the scene of the accident and the names and statements of any witnesses. In fact, if you have an iPhone or any other kind of a phone with a camera and/or video recorder, utilize it to capture evidence.

Don’t make the mistake of making statements, signing documents or being interviewed before specking with an attorney.

Attorneys that deal with auto accident victims hear of this type of thing all of the time: Friends and family members who give advice based on what seems fair, what they heard or what they saw on TV. Although they are just trying to be helpful, they don’t understand case valuation. More importantly, because you are their friend or family member, they look at it from a biased perspective-which makes sense-they care about you. The bottom line is that you need an expert auto accident attorney to make certain you get the most accurate assessment of your situation and advocate for you so you get the settlement that benefits and protects you and your loved ones.

The study found that fatalities and injuries to motorcyclists and pedestrians had costs out of proportion to the number of actual accidents, because in both cases the injuries were more severe since the victims were relatively unprotected. Motorcyclists only made up 6 percent of all fatalities and injuries, but took up 12% of the costs, while pedestrians, likewise, represented 5% of all injuries and auto accident deaths, but accounted for 10% of the costs.

The CDC found that most of the accidents are preventable and released a list of recommendations and an auto accident fact sheet for communities to help lower the number of auto accident injuries and fatalities.