Medical Knowldege Re: Impact Injuries

Tassyr · Jul 30, 2018

So I'm writing a sci-fi thing. Or at least, attempting to. As part of it, the main char of one of the short stories is rather forcibly yanked out of his vehicle at about a story and a half to a story in height off the ground and tossed at least ten or so feet away. Sorta like how you'd pitch a beer can away if you had no qualms about littering, yanno?

Thing is, while I do want him to get messed up, I don't actively want to KILL him. What kind of injuries might he realistically sustain from that kind of impact assuming he fell on soil? And, as a bonus, if any of you know- how long might it take to recover from such a toss?

Thanks in advance!

shadowsminder · Jul 31, 2018

What's realistic depends on the conditioning of the character's body, how soft and clear is the soil, and what kind of medical care he gets immediately afterward. I think what's most likely is a dislocated shoulder from the yanking. Also, bruising from twisting midair and the fall. Torn skin is likely, unless he's protected by his clothing. He might not notice bleeding immediately, unless he's particularly sensitive to the site of blood.

Injuries around or to the ribs is likely if the ground is compacted soil, and those are distracting. Have you ever lived with dislocated or cracked ribs? Breathing becomes a compromise with every breath.

Take deep bruising seriously if you want him to suffer. Bone bruises HURT! They feel like broken bones and can take as long to heal. Torn ligaments can be disabling.

A broken limb is possible. The severity has a wide range.

I've known plenty of people who have dislocated their shoulder. It's really unpleasant but can be partially fixed within minutes. When anything TEARS, there's a chance of not regaining full use of the arm, ever, depending on available healthcare.

I can believe a SF character recovering completely within days, with help. Bad injuries without miraculous treatments could take him in months to feel as if he's recovered.

Experience: Martial artist who taught self defense. Multiple injuries in childhood from falls, pre-training.

bwebs · Jul 31, 2018

10-15 foot fall? Anywhere from nothing to a broken neck/impalement depending on the landing. Lots of room for writer's discretion here. A stuntman could roll from that and come up running. If most people took a 10-15 foot drop I'd say number one most likely is sprained or fractured ankle. If tossed like a beer can with an uncontrolled landing it's bruising scraping, maybe a hip pointer or bruised ribs.

Tassyr · Jul 31, 2018

aspirit said:
What's realistic depends on the conditioning of the character's body, how soft and clear is the soil, and what kind of medical care he gets immediately afterward. I think what's most likely is a dislocated shoulder from the yanking. Also, bruising from twisting midair and the fall. Torn skin is likely, unless he's protected by his clothing. He might not notice bleeding immediately, unless he's particularly sensitive to the site of blood.

Injuries around or to the ribs is likely if the ground is compacted soil, and those are distracting. Have you ever lived with dislocated or cracked ribs? Breathing becomes a compromise with every breath.

Take deep bruising seriously if you want him to suffer. Bone bruises HURT! They feel like broken bones and can take as long to heal. Torn ligaments can be disabling.

A broken limb is possible. The severity has a wide range.

I've known plenty of people who have dislocated their shoulder. It's really unpleasant but can be partially fixed within minutes. When anything TEARS, there's a chance of not regaining full use of the arm, ever, depending on available healthcare.

I can believe a SF character recovering completely within days, with help. Bad injuries without miraculous treatments could take him in months to feel as if he's recovered.

Experience: Martial artist who taught self defense. Multiple injuries in childhood from falls, pre-training.

bwebs said:
10-15 foot fall? Anywhere from nothing to a broken neck/impalement depending on the landing. Lots of room for writer's discretion here. A stuntman could roll from that and come up running. If most people took a 10-15 foot drop I'd say number one most likely is sprained or fractured ankle. If tossed like a beer can with an uncontrolled landing it's bruising scraping, maybe a hip pointer or bruised ribs.

Thanks for that, both of ya! To be fair, the guy has a helmet on, and is in a military-grade pilot's jumpsuit (Nothing really IMPACT rated, but tough enough that I'd imagine it'd stop him from getting shredded on anything. Though it'll probably be in bad shape after.) And he's a military pilot, so he has to match a certain level of physical fitness. Though he's somewhat stunned, so he's not going to be able to do much stunt-rolling around after. I like the part about the bone deep bruising and I'll almost certainly dislocate his shoulder...

WeaselFire · Aug 5, 2018

Broken collarbone fits your needs as described. Just has to try to brace from the fall, an impact to the arm will do it.

Jeff

Medical Knowldege Re: Impact Injuries

Tassyr

shadowsminder

writing in the shadows

bwebs

Tassyr

WeaselFire

Benefactor Member