Back Injuries Resulting From Car Accidents

Your spine and spinal cord are what you have in common with all other vertebrates, from the majestic giraffe to the terrifying Komodo dragon to the tasty catfish.  You never think much about all of the bones and ligaments that make up your spinal column until something goes wrong.  Back pain has a way of interfering with your everyday functioning in ways that pain in other body parts does not; it is much easier to get through an entire shift at work with shoulder pain or a sore foot than it is with a backache.  The symptoms that arise from back injuries affect more than just your back, and they manifest themselves as other unpleasant sensations besides pain.  An injury to one or more of your vertebrae, intervertebral discs, or spinal nerves can interfere severely with your ability to work and to engage in ordinary activities.  If your back problems started or got much worse after a recent car accident, contact a Columbia car accident lawyer.

Herniated Discs

Herniated discs, also known as bulged discs, ruptured discs, or slipped discs, are among the most difficult types of back injuries when it comes to finding lasting relief.  Intervertebral discs are made of cartilage, and each disc has a soft nucleus and an outer layer of tougher cartilage.  There is a disc separating each vertebra from the one below it, allowing for flexibility.  A herniated disc occurs when part of the nucleus of a disc protrudes out into the outer layer, putting pressure on a spinal nerve.  This results in pain in parts of the body affected by that nerve.  Herniated discs most often occur in the lumbar spine, causing pain in the lower back, buttocks, and legs.

Although disc injuries can result from acute trauma, such as a car accident, they can also be the result of age-related degeneration of the intervertebral discs.  If you are having slipped disc symptoms after a car accident, you should follow up consistently with medical care so that your records show that your herniated disc originated or worsened due to the car accident, instead of just being a normal part of aging.

Other Types of Back Injuries

Although seatbelts and airbags are effective at preventing the worst kinds of spinal injuries, it is still possible for car accidents to cause back problems, no matter how high your car’s safety score.  For example, a traumatic injury to the back can result in fractures in one or more vertebrae.  A fracture is characterized as a stress fracture if it manifests itself as a hairline crack in the bone, but it is a burst fracture if one vertebra breaks in multiple places.  Spinal fractures can also cause damage to nerves and intervertebral discs.  It is still possible to sustain a soft tissue injury, such a whiplash, even if you do not get a spinal fracture.

Let Us Help You Today

The car accident lawyers at the Stanley Law Group can help you if you have suffered a back injury in a car accident.  Contact The Stanley Law Group in Columbia, South Carolina or call (803)799-4700 for a free initial consultation.

Source:

alexanderorthopaedics.com/blog/common-back-injuries-from-a-car-accident/