Spinal Cord Injuries

Bronx, Brooklyn, Long Island, Queens, Manhattan, New York City, NY

 

Spinal cord injuries can cause partial or total paralysis and require lifelong living assistance. The spinal cord is a long bundle of large nerves and the entire body is given movement and sensation by the nerves which branch out from the spinal cord.

 

• Motor nerves carry movement instructions from the brain to body parts
• Sensory nerves carry messages back to the brain about temperature, pain, texture and other sensory data

 

The spinal cord itself is well-protected inside the vertebrae - the backbone. There are small openings in vertebra for the nerve branches to leave the spinal cord and branch out further into the body. The backbone can be injured without the spinal cord being injured.

 

Location of the Spinal Cord Injury

Exact consequences of a spinal cord injury depend on which exact part of the spinal cord was damaged. When the injury is higher up towards the head, more of the body can be paralyzed and a neck-level injury can cause total body paralysis, including the breathing muscles. That requires the person to be connected to a respirator. Complete paralysis is known as quadriplegia.

 

When the injury is lower, less of the body will be affected. Paralysis of the arms and upper body is known as paraplegia. There are also partial spinal cord injuries, where some messages can still travel to and from the brain. In these cases, the injured person will still have some sensation and movement ability below the injury level.

 

Spinal Cord Injury Symptoms

Some symptoms indicate an emergency situation and examples are loss of consciousness or fading in and out of consciousness, breathing difficulty, and severe back or neck pain.

 

There may also be other symptoms such as:

 

• Loss of bladder or bowel control
• Weakness in any part of the body
• Impaired coordination or balance
• Numbness or tingling in the extremities

 

All back injuries should be promptly examined and treated and the person should never be moved by a non-medical helper, no matter how well-intentioned they are. If you sustain a back injury in an auto or motorcycle accident, the EMT workers will very carefully strap you to a special back board before transporting you to the hospital.

 

If you or a loved one have sustained any type of spinal cord injury and wonder about your legal choices, please call or email our personal injury lawyers for a free case evaluation in NYC including Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx, Manhattan, or Long Island, NY.

 

 

 

Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, P.C.
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