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What is the Most Common Cause of Spinal Cord Injuries?

March 20, 2023Articles

What is the Spinal Cord?

The spinal cord is a long, tube-like band of tissue connecting the brain to the lower back. Its function is to carry nerve signals between the brain and the body. These nerve signals allow the body to feel sensations, move, and carry out body functions.

Spinal cord injuries can block or disrupt the receipt of vital messages the body needs resulting in temporary or permanent impairment or paralysis.

What is the Number One Cause of Spinal Cord Injuries?

What is the Number One Cause of Spinal Cord Injuries?

Car accidents are the leading cause of spinal cord injuries in the United States at about 38% according to the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center (NSCISC).

Car accidents result in approximately 17,000 new cases of spinal cord injury every year.

Spinal Cord Injuries and the Body

The spinal cord is divided into three parts: the lumbar, thoracic, and cervical spine. The lumbar spine is the lower back. The thoracic spine is the mid-back, and the cervical spine is located at the upper back and neck.

Spinal cord injuries typically impact the areas of the body below the location of the spinal cord damage. 

Spinal Cord Injuries and Car Accidents

Spinal cord injuries from car accidents range in severity from whiplash to total paralysis (quadriplegia). Whiplash is one of the most common injuries experienced in car accidents. 

The Cleveland Clinic defines whiplash as an injury that happens when sudden force or movement strains your neck and spine, damaging bone, muscle, ligaments, and nerves. While treatable and short-lived, whiplash may cause pain for months or years.

Other frequently cited spinal cord injuries include:

  • Herniated or ruptured spinal disks
  • Fractured spinal vertebrae or spondylolisthesis
  • Facet joint injuries
  • Spinal stenosis (Asymptomatic spinal stenosis becoming symptomatic).

Spinal cord injuries need immediate treatment after a car accident. Some injuries are asymptomatic and difficult to recognize; however, others may present in a variety of ways.

Recognizing Spinal Cord Injuries after a Car Accident

Always seek medical attention following a car accident whether or not injuries are apparent. Some injuries can take days or weeks to appear without the assistance of advanced scanning equipment.

Symptoms to be aware of following a spinal cord injury include:

  • Muscle weakness
  • Loss of motion
  • Muscle spasm
  • Loss of sensation
  • Difficulty breathing
  • Sexual dysfunction
  • Bowel dysfunction
  • Painful stinging or pinching sensations in the back
  • Digestive problems
  • Numbness or tingling

For more information about spinal cord injuries sustained in car accidents, contact an experienced Connecticut personal injury attorney.

Contact an Experienced Connecticut Spinal Cord Injury Attorney Today

If you or your loved one suffered a spinal cord injury through no fault of your own, contact the attorneys at Weber & Rubano. Weber & Rubano has more than seventy-five years of experience as an established Connecticut law firm and will review your spinal injury claim at no cost to you.

At Weber & Rubano, we believe in justice for our clients. We use our staff of over ten lawyers and paralegals as a force to achieve your legal goals and get you the compensation you need to move forward with your life.

Call or contact Weber & Rubano online now to discuss your spinal cord injury with a legal professional.