In most cases this injury will not have been caused by a car accident however there is a significant proportion that is a direct result of motor vehicle collisions. Road traffic accidents are a major cause of traumatic injury and represent more than half of all cases handled by personal injury solicitors. If you have been injured in a car accident and you want to make a compensation claim for personal injury and loss just complete the contact form, email our offices or use the solicitor’s helpline. Our car accident compensation claim solicitors offer free advice without further obligation. If we deal with your claim it will be on a no win no fee basis, compensation is paid in full and you do not have to fund or finance your car accident compensation claim.
Lumbar spine injuries occur in about 150,000 individuals in North America and that only includes those injuries that result in lumbar fracture. Millions of individuals have minor injuries of the lumbar spine—injuries to muscles or ligaments that are helped by over the counter medications and chiropractics. There are about 5000 cases of paraplegia per year that occur due to lumbar spine injuries.
Lumbar spinal injuries happen during sports injuries, falls, twisting injuries of the back, and motor vehicle accidents. Gunshot wounds and stabbing injuries can result in damage to the lumbar spine and the lumbar spinal nerves. The spinal cord stops at the level of L1 but many spinal nerves, called the cauda equina, travel through the lumbar spine and exit out of the various spinal foramina. Pelvic injuries are also common when you have a spinal injury to the lumbar spine.
Lumbar spinal trauma often occurs as a result of an injury that causes multiple bodily trauma, including other spinal injury, extremity fractures, internal bleeding and rib fractures. The most frequently injured spinal areas in the lumbar spine are the L1, L2 and T12 levels. The injuries are most common in those of age 30-39 years and is least common in those under the age of 18. The most common bony injury is a compression fracture which can burst into the spinal canal and do damage to the spinal nerves.
Pain in the lumbar area is the most common side effect of a lumbar injury. You can also have weakness or paralysis of the legs or part of the legs as well as bowel and bladder dysfunction. Most people don’t die from the disease itself but die from related injuries such as spleen rupture, aortic damage or pelvic injuries with excessive blood loss. Delayed mortality is also due to urinary tract infections if bladder control is affected.
The demographics of lumbar spine injury includes that the injuries are greater in whites, the elderly female and postmenopausal estrogen use. It is more common in men if it is related to trauma and more common in females if the trauma is associated with osteoporosis.
Lumbar spine injuries can be caused by overuse injuries such as heavy lifting. This can result in a disc injury or just ligamentous injuries to the back. Injuries to the supporting muscles and tendons can cause low back pain that responds well to local ice and/or heat and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications. You can also damage a nerve as it exits the nerve root outlet. This is made worse when you have stenosis or narrowing of the spinal nerve root outlet or if a disc ruptures and damages the nerve as it exits the cauda equina in the nerve root foramen.
Diagnosis of lumbar spine injuries includes a careful history and physical examination of the back. Localized swelling can be seen in the back in some cases and the back may be artificially straight due to muscle tension. There can be weakness or paralysis of the lower extremities. X-rays of the back may show subluxation of the lumbar vertebrae and a CT scan or MRI scan of the back may show the exact abnormality of the back which is going on. A myelogram can be done using dye and x-rays to see where there is narrowing of the spinal canal or nerve foramina.
There are many treatments for the condition of lumbar spinal trauma. Immobilization may be necessary in order to keep the spine stable until the back ligaments heal. It is also helpful in controlling pain. In minor cases of lumbar spine trauma, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications can be utilized to control pain and inflammation. Stronger pain killers containing codeine or oxycodone are necessary if the injury and pain are severe.
If the spinal cord is injured, the person needs immediate corticosteroid therapy to shrink the swelling of the spinal nerves and spinal cord. It is infused into the system for about twenty four hours after the initial bolus of corticosteroids by IV. Surgery is used to fuse unstable portions of the spine and to remove fragments of bone from the spinal canal. Disc injuries are also sometimes treated with surgery.
If you have suffered physically, mentally or financially, you should consider making an accident compensation claim. For free telephone advice from specialist personal injury solicitors just call the helpline. Our lawyers will assess the strength of your claim and will advise you on your potential award of compensation without any further obligation.