What is the recommended treatment for a cervical vertebra fracture?
A minor (compression) fracture is often treated with a cervical collar or brace worn for six to eight weeks until the bone heals on its own. A more severe or complex fracture may require traction, or surgical repair or a spinal fusion.
How long does it take for a cervical fracture to heal?
Traction allows for very little movement. You’ll have to wear rigid braces or a halo vest to steady your spine. During this time, you won’t be able to drive or do other activities. This treatment can take up to 12 weeks, while your fracture heals.
Can you recover from a cervical fracture?
Broken necks may be simple breaks that can heal within just a few weeks, or they can be life-altering injuries. Because of this, all neck breaks should be treated as medical emergencies.
How serious is a cervical fracture?
Also known as a broken neck or a cervical fracture, it is a break in one or more of the bones found in the cervical (neck) portion of the spine. A fractured vertebra in the neck is a very serious condition which can result in paralysis and even death.
How Serious is a C6 fracture?
A C6 spinal cord injury affects the cord near the base of the neck. Injuries to this area of the spinal cord can result in loss of sensation or function of everything in the body from the top of the ribcage on down, including all four extremities.
What vertebrae breaks the worst?
Atlas C1 and axis C2 injuries are the most severe because damage to the spinal cord at any level has potential to remove communication to the rest of the body below that point.
What are the signs and symptoms of a cervical spine fracture?
What are the signs and symptoms of a cervical fracture?
- Pain, tenderness, swelling, or muscle spasms in your neck.
- Not being able to turn or twist your neck freely.
- Trouble swallowing or breathing.
- Loss of feeling or pinprick pain in your arms or legs.
- Numbness, pain, or tingling at the base of your head.
What happens when you break C5 and C6?
An injury to the spinal cord at the C5-C6 level may cause pain, weakness, or paralysis in the arms and/or legs. There may be loss of bowel and bladder control or breathing problems in some cases. Nonsurgical treatments are often tried first for pain that stems from C5-C6.
Can you recover from a C6 fracture?
Individuals with milder C6 SCIs typically have different recovery outlooks because they have more spared neural pathways. However, many other factors such as motivation, intensity of rehabilitation, and pre-existing health conditions can also influence recovery after C6 spinal cord injury.
Can a broken neck cause brain damage?
Brain damage was more frequently associated with upper cervical injury. Those patients with upper cervical injury are at greater risk of suffering from skull base fractures and severe intracranial hematomas than those with mid to lower cervical injury.
How should you sleep with a fractured spine?
Sleep on your back with a pillow under your knees. This will decrease pressure on your back. You may also sleep on your side with 1 or both of your knees bent and a pillow between them. It may also be helpful to sleep on your stomach with a pillow under you at waist level.
How is a cervical fracture diagnosed?
Imaging Studies A CT scan is the best test to verify that a fracture is or is not present. If no fracture is identified, but a patient has neck pain and was involved in large trauma or accident, flexion/extension x-rays are often obtained to verify that there if no evidence of ligamentous instability.
