Understanding the effects of a spinal cord injury.

When a person is in an accident, he or she can suffer from a catastrophic injury. One of these is a spinal cord injury and it can have a long-term effect on the person’s ability to do everyday tasks.

Spinal cord injuries

A spinal cord injury is damage to part of the cord or nerves at the end of a person’s spinal column. It can cause physical problems with strength and loss of feeling in the affected area and can also cause mental, emotional and social difficulties for the victim.

There are two types of spinal cord injuries, complete and incomplete. A complete injury means that the person loses all feeling and movement below where the injury is on his or her body. An incomplete injury means that he or she has lost some function below the affected area. If a person is paralyzed from the injury, his or her arms, legs and torso can be affected.

The victim may not be able to feel heat, cold or touch, may have pain from nerve damage and may have a hard time breathing or coughing, among other symptoms.

Causes

Spinal cord injuries are often caused by accidents when there is a sudden impact to the person’s body and all of their injuries may not be immediately known. This is because in the days, weeks and months after an accident, he or she can suffer from bleeding, swelling and inflammation that gets worse.

A person who suffers from a catastrophic injury may no longer be able to work and may have many expensive medical bills to pay. An experienced attorney can file a claim for compensation on the injured person’s behalf.