Spine injury and broken back bone?

Hi,
My cousin (only 18 years old) had a car accident(the driver was drunk and was speeding) and he had spine injury and broken back bone. He had an operation 2 days ago and the broken back bone was fixed with platinum, he can talk but he can't feel or move hes body from the neck down. I feel sorry for him-It's horrible to watch him like that. Do you think he will be able some day to walk again? Will he has a normal life or he will suffer for rest of his life? Thank you

That depends on the type of injury and how much damage was done to the spinal cord. Sometimes, the fractured bone is broken but not moved out of its normal position very much, and if this is the case, the spinal cord may just be a little bruised and recover after a few weeks/months.

If there was significant movement of the broken bone(s) in the spine, then the spinal cord could be badly damaged or even severed.

This is a much more serious injury, and recovery will take much longer, and may leave your cousin with some big challenges to overcome.

How serious the injury is will depend on the level at which the spinal cord was damaged. If the nerves cannot feed signals to the muscles to activate them, then they will be paralysed.

Each level in the spinal cord sends nerves to particular muscle groups, and the paralysis will follow a predictable pattern.

Your cousin needs your support in the coming weeks and months ahead, both emotionally and practically.

Many spinal cord injury patients go on to live fulfilling and productive lives, and while he may have to take a different path to the one he had chosen before his accident, he may still find contentment and happiness.

I wish him the best, and I hope you and the rest of your family can rally round him in his time of need.

We can't possibly tell, but it's possible that the damage is temporary, if it's due to bruising and swelling of the spinal cord.

It's really early days. No one is going to know how serious the damage is for a while yet, cause the spine goes into shock after trauma.

Do they know if the spinal cord's been damaged/severed?

He's young, they are doing wonderful things with stem cells which looks promising. If the worst comes to the worst, then the future hold some hope.

I hope things look brighter soon.

There's no way for me to know this and I have no idea of the nature and extent of the cord injury. It sounds like the spinal cord injury may have involved the 4th or 5th cervical vertebra. It's only been 2 days and he will still have swelling. Once the swelling subsides, his neurologist will have a much better idea of his prognosis. And if it turns out that he will have abiding quadraplegia , it doesn't have to involve suffering. When you visit him, make sure you put on a happy face. He needs to keep his spirits up to better cope with whatever his future holds.

Its so hard to tell with injuries of this nature.

You have to give It time to heal and see what happens.

My Husband broke his back about 20 years ago. He had a truck that he was working under and it fell off the jacks and onto his back whilst he was on all fours.

He had surgery and was in hospital for ages. For two weeks he had no sensation in his legs at all.

But slowly he regained feeling and he made almost a full recovery.

He has a lump on his back and occasionally suffers mild back pain but other than that he is fine.

Stay positive and give him as much encouragement and support as you can.

Speak to the Doctors to see what degree of recovery they are expecting and talk to as many people as you need to in order to understand what is happening to your cousin and what to expect.

I wish you all well.

God Bless. xxxx

My sympathies to you and your cousin! What a terrible tragedy! Unfortunately with injuries like that, only time will tell. The doctors should be able to give you some indication though!! I have a friend who had a serious back injury and she was paralysed from the waist down. At first it is really hard to accept,and you will find you both go through a range of emotions, but try and be the positive one for him! With determination, you can get through it and he can lead a relatively normal life. My friend does water sports, para gliding .. she is still the life and soul of party! It will definately change his life, but then again it will bring different aspects to life. It isstill early days though,and the body has a way of shutting down when serious injuries are present. So give it some time and hopefully with physio and therapies he will be fine! Spinal injuries usually take a long time to heal ... so patience and determination with ensure a speedy recovery! Goodluck to you both!!