Spinal cord injuries occur when there is a fraction or dislocation on the vertebrae. There are three kinds of injuries to the spinal cord. The three kinds of injuries are the severing, the tearing and the compression of the spinal cord. All of these injuries should be taken seriously and the proper action should be done when these injuries occur.
Immediate Care
Spinal injuries are very serious and can be life threatening most of the time. This is why immediate care is needed. The immediate care will start with the EMTs making the first evaluation then immobilizing the patient. The immediate treatment should be done eight hours within the time that the injury occurred. This care given within this the eight hours will determine if the patient will recover or be permanently injured. The existence of the injury is generally determined by the care given during the eight hours.
Ongoing Care
Because of the trauma, the spinal cord will swell. For the first day, steroids will be given to the patient so that any further injury will be prevented or reduced. In most cases, the injured area must be stabilized. This can be done by undergoing surgery to realign the vertebrae. Braces, halo and fusing vertebrae will be used to stabilize the patient.
Stem Cell Treatment
Stem cell treatment is one of the cares that can be given to patients who suffer spinal injury. This treatment is still in the early stages and there are still no exact results. Embryonic stem cells have the capability to become any other kind of cell; this is why it is used in treating different medical conditions, including spinal injuries. The stem cell treatment may replace the oligodendrocyte cells that were lost in the spinal injury.
Hospital Care
In the hospital, the breathing and the blood pressure of the patient suffering from a spinal injury will be monitored by professionals. Other factors that will be checked include urine and stool retention, blood clots in the ends of the limbs, and the respiratory and cardiovascular complications. To stop any more damage to the body, sedation will be administered. If the spinal injury case is very serious, emergency surgery must be done to remove foreign objects and any other matter that may affect the spinal cord. This type of operations will be able to balance the spine. There are times when fusion materials will be needed to treat spinal injuries.
General Measures
Medication must be taken in a regular basis so that the pain and infections can be controlled and prevented. There are a lot of modern technologies that help treat spinal injury. Some of these modern medical technologies are high-tech wheelchair, electrical stimulation tools, and other automatic devices.