April 15, 2025 | Personal Injury
Road rash occurs when your skin scrapes against the road. Sometimes, it’s a simple scrape, but other times it can be more serious. In Chicago, where many people ride bikes and motorcycles, road rash injuries are quite common. Here’s what you need to know.
What Is Road Rash?
Road rash is a skin injury that happens when you slide across the pavement and your skin gets scraped away by the rough surface. Road rash is most common in bike, motorcycle, and scooter accidents. It can be mild or severe.
Road rash can be classified as the following:
- First Degree: Just scrapes the outer skin
- Second Degree: Goes deeper into the skin
- Third Degree: Exposes muscle, fat, or even bone
Deep road rash can get infected, leave permanent scars, and sometimes cause lasting problems.
How Road Rash Happens In Chicago
According to the Chicago Data Portal, there are hundreds of bike and pedestrian accidents annually. Many lead to road rash.
The most common causes include:
- Motorcycle crashes, when riders slide across pavement
- Bicycle accidents, when cyclists fall or get hit
- Pedestrian accidents, when people are knocked down
- Scooter crashes, especially in downtown areas
Road rash happens more often in the summer when more people are outside riding bikes and scooters.
What Are Road Rash Injury Types?
The following are types of road rash injuries:
- Open wounds: You have deep cuts that might need stitches or even surgery
- Avulsions: Layers of skin get scraped off, showing the tissue underneath
- Compressions: Your body gets squeezed between objects like a car and the road
Road rash injuries can turn into serious problems if they get infected or if dirt and tiny rocks remain in the wound.
When To See a Doctor for Road Rash
Minor road rash can heal at home with proper care. However, some signs mean you should visit a doctor right away. See a medical professional if your wound keeps bleeding and won’t stop. Also, get help if the scrape is deep enough that you can see fat or muscle tissue, and watch for signs of infection like redness, warmth, or pus coming from the wound.
A fever is another warning sign that needs medical attention. If your road rash doesn’t start to get better after a few days, that’s also the time to see a doctor. Remember that healing takes different amounts of time, depending on how bad the injury is. Small scrapes might heal in two to four weeks, but serious road rash can take months to heal and might leave permanent scars.
How To Treat Road Rash
If you have mild road rash, wash the wound with mild soap and water, then remove any visible dirt. Once the wound is clean, apply antibiotic ointment and cover it with a clean bandage. Remember to change it daily to prevent infection.
If you’ve suffered a more serious road rash, you might need to see a doctor. Your doctor will probably need to clean the wound thoroughly and remove dead tissue. They may prescribe antibiotics. For severe cases, expect special dressings or even skin grafts for large damaged areas.
How To Prevent Road Rash In Chicago
You can lower your chances of getting road rash by doing the following:
- Wear protective shirts with long sleeves and pants instead of shorts
- Use gloves when biking or motorcycling
- Wear a helmet and other safety gear
- Stay in bike lanes when possible
- Be extra careful at busy intersections
Chicago has over 400 miles of bike lanes, but some are safer than others. Barriers are much more protective than painted lines on the street.
Seek Legal Help if You’re Dealing With Road Rash
Cyclists, motorcyclists, and pedestrians in Chicago can fall victim to incidents that cause road rash. The severity of these injuries varies from mild to severe, and people who have suffered these bad scrapes should seek medical attention even when they feel alright after the accident. Additionally, it’s important to talk to a personal injury lawyer to discover your legal options.
Contact our Personal Injury Law Firm at Powell and Pisman Injury Lawyers
If you’ve been injured in an accident in Chicago, IL, don’t navigate the legal process alone. Our dedicated team is here to provide the expert guidance you need to secure the compensation you deserve. Contact our experienced attorneys at Powell and Pisman Injury Lawyers for a free consultation.
We serve Cook County and its surrounding areas:
Powell and Pisman Injury Lawyers
875 N Dearborn St 4th Floor
Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 635-5400
Open 24/7