One of the most difficult injuries anyone can sustain in a car accident is damage to the spinal column or spinal cord. Back injuries are all too common; according to the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center at UAB, there are 12,500 spinal cord injuries every year. Car accidents are one of the main causes of serious back injury, including spinal cord or spinal column injury. Surgery may be necessary to repair the damage that was caused, and in many cases it is only a partial fix. If you have been injured by a negligent driver, you may be able to collect compensation to help pay for your medical bills and pain and suffering. This compensation could prove vital in keeping you out of financial trouble in the weeks, months, and even years that it takes to heal from a serious back injury, or the everlasting complications that go along with it. Contact an experienced Columbus, Ohio, car accident attorney today to discuss your legal options.
Spinal Compression
In the event that the car accident you or your loved one were in caused damage to the spinal column (the bone surrounding the spinal cord), it may have caused a deformation or collapse. This deformation may be putting pressure on the spinal cord, which is the delicate nerve bundle that is vital for every movement that you make below your head. Injuries such as collapsed discs, bulging discs, bone spurs, stretched ligaments, and thickened joints may put pressure on the spinal cord that results in severe pain.
Spinal Compression Symptoms
In the aftermath of the car accident, you may notice some of the symptoms listed below. If that is the case, you may have spinal compression and need to seek the care of a health professional at once.
- Back pain;
- Weakness;
- Numbness anywhere;
- Paralysis;
- Not able to stay steady; and
- Bladder or bowel problems.
Spinal Decompression Surgery
According to the Cleveland Clinic, the following types of surgery may be used to alleviate the pain of spinal compression.
- Corpectomy surgery to remove vertebra and discs;
- Osteophyte surgery to removing bone spurs;
- Diskectomy surgery to remove part of a disc;
- Foraminotomy surgery to removing tissue and bone, which widens the nerve root openings as they exit the spinal cord;
- Foraminectomy surgery is the same idea as foraminotomy surgery except that during this type of procedure, very large sections of tissue and bone are removed;
- Laminotomy surgery to remove part of the lamina bone from the spinal canal; and
- Laminectomy surgery to remove the entire lamina.
Risks Involved
There are always risks involved in surgery, and spinal decompression surgery is no different. Patients that undergo spinal decompression surgery may experience:
- Excessive bleeding;
- Blood clots;
- Tissue damage;
- Nerve damage
- An allergic reaction to anesthesia; and
- Infection.
If you have been injured in an auto accident and required or will require spinal decompression surgery to function normally again, you have up to two years to file a personal injury claim against the negligent party. Contact an experienced Columbus, Ohio car accident attorney today at the law offices of Ohio Car Accident Lawyers to discuss your legal options.
