Rupture of the Liver in a Bicycle Accident

Rupture of the Liver in a Bicycle Accident

Bicycles are a great form of exercise, a method of transportation, and a fun, leisurely activity. Unfortunately, people can have serious accidents on a bike. Some statistics recently published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that:

• About 1,000 people are killed while riding a bicycle every year. This is about three people per day.
• More than 450,000 people will suffer serious traumatic injuries as a result of a bicycle accident.
• The total cost for both fatal and non-fatal bicycle accidents will result in lifetime costs of $10 billion due to lost income and productivity.

These statistics show that bicycle accidents can lead to severe injuries. Just like auto accidents, there are many different injuries that people can sustain in a collision involving a bike. One of these injuries involves trauma to the liver.

Rupture of the Liver can happen in a Bicycle Accident

A research paper was published discussing a liver damage that can occur in a bicycle accident. The liver plays an important role in the digestion of many different foods. It also plays a significant role in the removal of toxins from the body. Damage to the liver can lead to a reduction in these functions and could have fatal consequences. In this paper, it was revealed that people who suffer bicycle accidents are at a significant risk of suffering a liver rupture. When people crash their bicycle, they could flip over the handlebars. This comes from conservation of momentum, where the bicycle stops moving due to the collision but the person riding the bike continues to move forward, flipping over the handlebars. When this happens, the handlebars of their bike can collide with their abdomen, leading to liver rupture. Symptoms of liver damage include:

• Severe abdominal pain in the right upper quadrant
• Possible yellowing of the skin and eyes
• Nausea and vomiting
• A change in the color of stool

Anyone who has these symptoms should seek care from a medical professional immediately. If these symptoms developed immediately following an accident involving a bicycle, they could be a sign of a ruptured liver. If it has ruptured, the liver’s digestive enzymes and capsule might have torn as well, causing internal bleeding and possible septic shock. Without emergent treatment, the end result could be a liver transplant or even death.

Image Attribution: Depositsphotos.com
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