If you have been in a car accident, you may have sustained a neck or back injury. Neck and back injuries are all too common results of auto accidents. These injuries can not only be painful but can be debilitating and impact all aspects of your life. Treatment can be extensive and, in some instances, invasive as an injury may require serious medical intervention. Through seeking immediate medical attention after an accident and complying with doctor recommendations for follow-up care, accident victims with neck or back injuries may have some of the pain from these kinds of injuries alleviated and be put on the road to recovery.
Possible Treatment for Neck and Back Injuries
After being in a car accident, it is important to seek immediate medical attention for your injuries. Additionally, it can be critical to seek follow-up medical care for your injuries and to be mindful of any symptoms you may be experiencing after an accident. In many instances, you may feel pain and other symptoms from the accident right away. Other times, you may not experience some symptoms until hours or even days after an accident has occurred.
To help your doctors properly diagnose and treat your injuries, it can be important to pay attention to your body after an accident and note any symptoms you are experiencing. Some common symptoms of neck and back injuries that you may experience right away include:
- Neck, back, or head pain
- Numbness or tingling in different areas of your body
- Difficult walking
- Loss of balance
- Difficulty moving your fingers or toes
- Difficulty breathing
Other symptoms of neck and back injuries that may be delayed in presenting themselves include:
- Headaches
- Stomach pain
- Tenderness in the stomach area
- Neck, back, or shoulder pain or pinching
- Continuing numbness or tingling in the arms, hands, and fingers
- Loss or reduced hearing or vision
The specific treatment you will need to undergo for your neck or back injury will largely depend on the nature and extent of the injury. In many cases, a neck or back injury will immediately or eventually involve treatment including physical and massage therapy as well as prescription medication. Hot and cold therapy as well as a TENS Unit may also help alleviate injury symptoms.
There are some neck and back injuries that will often require serious medical intervention. Disc herniation, for instance, can be particularly devastating and is quite common an injury for accident victims to experience. Disc herniation refers to damage to the vertebral discs, which are spongy structures in the spine which act as cushions or shock absorbers in the spine. They are located between each vertebra to cushion these bones from knocking against one another. In a car accident, the force of impact can compress the vertebral discs or shift them out of alignment. Depending on the extent of the disc herniation, surgical intervention to replace the disc may be ordered. When undiagnosed or not properly treated, disc herniation can have tragic effects and can also make it more likely for a person to experience other degenerative spinal disorders in the future.
Personal Injury Attorney
Getting the right medical treatment for your accident injuries is so important to your health and well-being. Medical treatment is, however, expensive. Fortunately, the law allows you to pursue a personal injury claim seeking compensation for the harm you have suffered in an accident caused by the negligence of someone else. Hunt Law is here to help you enforce this legal right. Contact us today.