{"id":3275,"date":"2023-12-21T10:41:52","date_gmt":"2023-12-21T14:41:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/?p=3275"},"modified":"2023-12-21T13:02:57","modified_gmt":"2023-12-21T17:02:57","slug":"spinal-cord-injuries-what-you-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/spinal-cord-injuries-what-you-need-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Spinal Cord Injuries"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">September is Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month. Learn about the symptoms of a spinal cord injury, and what to do if you think you\u2019ve experienced one because of an accident.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/SPINAL-CORD-INJURIES-1.png\" alt=\"spinal cord injuries\" class=\"wp-image-3276\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Each year, thousands of Canadians suffer from a spinal cord injury. These injuries can be devastating to someone\u2019s life, and can result in life long care with serious physical and emotional challenges.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This blog post will explain:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How a spinal cord works and what happens when it is injured<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Symptoms of a spinal cord injury<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What to do if you think you have a spinal cord injury&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How our team of personal injury lawyers can help after a spinal cord injury&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you have experienced a spinal cord injury because of an accident or fall, Fidelis Law is here to make sure you recover properly and get the compensation you deserve after your accident. Contact our team of personal injury lawyers to get a free consultation for your case, and read the rest of this blog post for more information.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What is a spinal cord?&nbsp;<\/span><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The spinal cord is a thick bundle of nerves that runs through the vertebrae, also known as backbones, in your spine. This bundle of nerves measures about 18 inches long, starting at the base of your brain and ending at your behind.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The spinal cord acts as a highway between your brain and the rest of your body. If you want to move any part of your body &#8211; from taking a step to wiggling a finger &#8211; the message is sent in the form of nerve impulses through your spinal cord. The highway runs both ways: if you stub a toe or touch something hot, the resulting pain and pressure signals are sent back up to your brain faster than you can say \u201couch\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What is a spinal cord injury?&nbsp;<\/span><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A spinal cord injury is any sustained damage to the spinal cord, or the nerves at the end of the spinal canal. This can permanently impact many physiological areas, such as sensations, strength, motor ability, and other functions.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the spinal cord is damaged, the highway is essentially closed and nerve impulses can\u2019t get through. This results in loss of mobility and sensation below the level of the injury.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><b>Traumatic vs. Non-Traumatic&nbsp;<\/b><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A spinal cord injury can occur because of an impact to the spinal cord from a traumatic event like a car accident, a fall, a violent act or a sporting activity. These are referred to as traumatic spinal cord injuries. A spinal cord injury can also occur because of a cancerous tumor, inflammation or infection. These are referred to as non-traumatic spinal cord injuries.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><b>Complete vs. Incomplete&nbsp;<\/b><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If the spinal cord is completely severed there is complete loss of mobility and sensation below the injury. If the spinal cord is not completely severed, a stream of nerve signals can still get through and may result in some feeling or movement below the injury.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><b>Levels of Injury&nbsp;<\/b><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are different levels of spinal cord injuries, and each can affect different body parts and physical abilities:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Cervical C1-C8<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Neck injury<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All four limbs are affected including hands&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">May not be able to breathe on your own<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">May affect speaking<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">May affect bowel and bladder functions<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Thoracic T1-T12<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Middle back<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Trunk and legs affected<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">May affect bowel and bladder functions<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Lumbar L1-L5<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lower back<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hips and legs affected<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">May affect bowel and bladder functions<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Sacral S1-S5<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bottom of the spine<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hips and legs affected<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">May affect bowel and bladder functions<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Symptoms of a Spinal Cord Injury&nbsp;<\/span><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A spinal cord injury can happen suddenly. You can experience one at any given time from playing a strenuous sport, being in a motor vehicle accident, having a serious fall, or doing any high-risk activity. If you\u2019ve been in an accident, it\u2019s important to know how to identify this injury so you can seek medical help immediately if one occurs.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The most common symptoms of a spinal cord injury include:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Pain, numbness or a burning sensation<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Inability to move or walk<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Inability to feel pressure, heat, or cold<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Muscle spasms<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Loss of bladder or bowel control<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Difficulty breathing<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Every injury is different and not all spinal cord injuries will present symptoms immediately. Depending on the severity and location of an injury, symptoms could be delayed because of swelling and bleeding around the spinal cord.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Living with a spinal cord injury can be costly as a result of medical bills, loss of income, hospital stays, rehabilitation and physical therapy, and more. On top of all this, filing an injury claim after your accident can be daunting &#8212; which is why we are here to help.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you or a loved one has been in an accident and suffered a spinal cord injury, our personal injury lawyers are in your corner and will support you through every step of your claim. Our team will take care of the details so that you can focus on recovering from your spinal cord injury.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/contact-us\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Contact our team of accident and injury lawyers today!<\/span><\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The information within this blog post was sourced from <a href=\"https:\/\/sci-can.ca\/\">Spinal Cord Injury Canada<\/a>. You can visit their website for more information and resources about brain injuries.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>September is Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month. Learn about the symptoms of a spinal cord injury, and what to do if you think you\u2019ve experienced &#8230; <a title=\"Spinal Cord Injuries\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/spinal-cord-injuries-what-you-need-to-know\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Spinal Cord Injuries\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5546,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[27,64],"class_list":["post-3275","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","tag-injuries","tag-spinal-cord-injury","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3275","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3275"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3275\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5548,"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3275\/revisions\/5548"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3275"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3275"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fidelislaw.ca\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3275"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}