Fractures of the spine: types and treatment

The spine is the backbone of the human body. It consists of 32-34 vertebrae, which are joined together by ligaments, cartilages and joints. It can withstand a very large load, but when certain factors (lifting heaviness, falling on ice or from a height, blows, etc.) occur, spinal fractures may occur. According to statistics, almost 13% of people who suffered such a trauma are disabled.

Kinds

Fracture of the spine (photo below) is divided into two types: compression and decompression. Let us consider them in more detail.

Compression fracture occurs if two forces act simultaneously on the spinal column : stretching and contraction. This will lead to the fact that the discs and the body of the vertebra will increase pressure, as a result of which it will acquire a wedge shape.

Decompression fractures of the spine are the result of a strong stretching of the vertebrae. This can also lead to a spinal cord injury.

Symptoms

At insignificant degrees of fractures, symptoms are almost not observed. If the trauma is more pronounced, then almost immediately after receiving it the patient has the following symptoms:

• Movement in the spine.
• Pain in the place of injury.
• Impaired breathing, right up to its delay.
• Pain along the entire length of the spine.
• Abdominal pain in the abdomen.
• Finding the head in a forced position and the inability to move it (with damage to the cervical region).

Who is most prone to this pathology?

Most often, vertebral fractures occur in people who have insufficient amounts of blood and calcium bones. These are mainly elderly people and children. Also, those who have been taking hormonal therapies for a long time (especially corticosteroids) also suffer from this. They greatly affect the decrease in bone density.

How to treat a fracture of the spine?

To get rid of this injury, it will take more than one month. As a rule, all treatment is appointed and conducted under the supervision of a specialist. The first thing that is necessary for this is strict adherence to bed rest and the intake of all prescribed medications.

The severity of the fracture and the patient's condition will depend on the methods of treatment, the initial task of which is full or partial unloading of the vertebra from all the loads. In general, stretching is used for this purpose.

Fractures of the spine of the initial degrees can be susceptible to conservative treatment, which will consist of the following measures:

• Wearing a medical corset fixing the spine along the axis.
• Physiotherapy.
• Massage.
• Admission of pain medications.
• Physiotherapeutic procedures.

In more complex situations (for example, damage to the spinal cord), surgical intervention is usually required. It can be performed with vertebroplasty or kyphoplasty. In both cases, the vertebra is fixed using special bone cement.