In the article, we will consider the signs and symptoms of a contusion of the thoracic spine. After all, this is a topic that requires attention and can, to some extent, save a person's life.
So, the spine plays an important role in the structure of the human skeleton, it is not for nothing that its name is translated from Latin as "support pillar". But, unfortunately, it has very little protection, as it is surrounded by a thin layer of soft tissue. Bruising it is a serious injury requiring qualified and immediate assistance from a specialist. Such injuries can lead to serious complications in case of incorrect and untimely treatment. Further details about the bruise of the thoracic spine.
Statistics
The incidence of bruising of the spine (thoracic, cervical and lumbar) is about one hundred people per one million population annually. Of these, seventy percent are damage to the subject. About threepercent of patients remain disabled.
Description of the disease
Contusion of the thoracic spine (ICD 10 S20-S29) is an injury to the supporting column, in which the soft tissue surrounding its rod suffers. Most injuries are mild, and neurological symptoms are not detected as a result of their receipt. But in severe forms, people may experience a concussion along with spinal cord injury. Which is often accompanied by neurological transient disorders.
Bruises of the thoracic spine can get people of any age, and this happens regardless of gender. But young people who lead an active lifestyle suffer more often, and, in addition, men of working age.
Description of the anatomical structure
The thoracic region consists of twelve vertebrae. From them, on each side, a person has ribs that connect in front with the sternum. This part of the spinal column is the least mobile in comparison with the lumbar and cervical sectors. Below is the lumbar region, which consists of five vertebrae that carry the greatest load. In the event that you look at the support post from the side, you will see that in its shape it resembles a kind of spring, whose bends smoothly pass from one to another. Such a structure is required to maintain balance, and at the same time to evenly distribute loads.
In the thoracolumbar sector, between the eleventh and second vertebrae, kyphosis turns into lordosis, and the load axis runs through the bodythis area. Therefore, with bruises and injuries of the spine, damage most often occurs in this area. The lower sections are affected much less frequently.
Symptoms
In most cases, with a bruise of the thoracic spine, patients remain alive. The main manifestations of the disease include the following symptoms:
- The presence of a violation of the sensitivity of the skin below the affected area of the spine.
- Presence of pain in the region of the heart.
- The appearance of some respiratory disorders like shortness of breath, pain on inhalation and exhalation.
- The presence of weakness, paresis or paralysis in the leg area can also be attributed to signs of bruising of the thoracic spine.
- Presence of involuntary urination and defecation (i.e. pelvic organ dysfunction may occur).
- The occurrence of sexual disorders in the form of impotence, frigidity, etc.
- Reduced tendon and muscle reflex.
- Appearance of pain discomfort in the thoracic sector of the spine.
Reasons
A contusion of the thoracic spine (ICD 10 S20-S29) can be obtained at work or at home. Such damage is quite likely as part of a fall on ice, and, moreover, in the event of a road traffic accident. Thus, the main cause of such an injury is usually indirect or direct mechanical action on the spine. Thoracic soft tissue injury is most often caused by:
- Being hit with a blunt heavy object.
- The consequence of an unsuccessful landing during a jump (especially this is dangerous because of the possibility of obtaining a compression vertebral fracture).
- Hit your back flat on the water (this is perhaps one of the most common causes that cause a bruise in the chest area). This impact is called diving injury.
- Whiplash damage to a support post due to sudden flexion-extension of the torso, which is typical when involved in a traffic accident.
There are also factors that affect the severity of the injury received, we are talking about:
- Age of the injured person and body weight.
- Degree of strength, intensity and duration of mechanical action on the thoracic region of the spine.
- The presence of an anatomical pathology or a chronic disease of the supporting column in a person.
Consequences
Complications as a result of a bruise are considered conditions that doctors cannot eliminate in the course of treating patients after they have received a corresponding injury. These include the following negative consequences:
- Partial or complete paralysis.
- Having persistent urinary and fecal incontinence.
- Occurrence of impotence or frigidity.
- Having a curvature of the spine.
- Loss of skin sensation in the chest area.
- Coma.
Classification
Contusion of the thoracic region of the spine is classified according to severitydiseases:
- In case of minor damage, the recovery period, as a rule, takes up to one and a half months. At the same time, minor neurological changes are noted in the victim's condition.
- In the case of moderate severity, the recovery period usually takes up to four months. Against this background, there is an absolute violation of the innervation of the affected area of the spine.
- As a result of a severe bruise, the recovery period takes more than six months, but, unfortunately, it is not possible to fully restore the previous functioning of the body.
Diagnosis
It should be remembered that improper treatment of a contusion of the thoracic spine (ICD code S20-S29) is dangerous for the occurrence of serious disorders in the body. Before proceeding with treatment, it is required to determine the nature of the injury, making the correct diagnosis. The following types of diagnostics help the doctor in this:
- Conducting a patient survey. In the course of this, information should be obtained about the conditions of injury, as well as the specifics of the symptoms.
- Performing examination of the patient. Search for externally noticeable deformation and precise determination of the boundaries of the damaged area.
- Checking the nervous reaction. It is produced manually or using special medical instruments. This determines whether the patient has any problems with tactile sensations and reflexes.
- Palpation of the back. Thanks to this procedure, tense muscleareas along with painful foci and hidden deformities of the spine.
- Blood and urine test. The results show the general condition of the body and reveal the ongoing inflammatory process. What else does the diagnosis of a contusion of the thoracic spine suggest?
- Performing an x-ray. Such a procedure is necessary in order to most accurately determine the location of the damage and its nature.
- Magnetic resonance and computed tomography help to obtain the most detailed picture of the bruised area and assess the degree of deformation of the vertebrae, as well as intervertebral discs.
- Performing a lumbar puncture. Its purpose is to confirm or refute the fact that the patient has a hemorrhage in the region of the spinal cord.
Treatment of bruised thoracic spine
What to do with such a pathology? The main thing in this matter is to start competent treatment of the injury as soon as possible. First aid for an injured person should be the following set of measures:
- First of all, it will be necessary to immediately provide the patient with complete immobility.
- In the event that there is no breathing or it is difficult, then it is necessary to perform procedures aimed at artificial ventilation of the lungs, without disturbing the immobile position of the patient.
- A cold object is applied to the bruised area.
- During transportation, it is necessary to maintain complete immobility of the affected area of the spine. The injured patient should be placed on their back.
The patient, regardless of the nature of his bruise, is prescribed anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs that do not contain steroids. A set of other pharmaceuticals, as well as a set of therapeutic procedures, are prescribed after the doctor determines the symptoms and nature of the damage.
For mild illness
In the presence of a slight bruise, when the structure of the internal organs and the spinal cord is not damaged, radical therapy is not prescribed, limited to bed rest, and, in addition, a temporary ban on any physical activity. The bruised area can be rubbed with ointments, for example, Troxevasin or Lyoton. In the event that the condition of the injured patient does not improve within a week, then it is worth re-examination in order to search for a previously unidentified complication.
In severe form
In case of severe bruises of the spinal cord of the thoracic spine, for example, doctors carry out complex medical treatment in a hospital. Within the framework of which combined combinations of drugs such as, for example, anticoagulants are used along with angioprotectors and anabolics. In certain cases, the doctor prescribes wearing an orthopedic collar or a rigid corset.
To avoid complications from bruising of the thoracic spine, the patient needs a long bedmode. But such treatment, in turn, can lead to bedsores. To eliminate them, drugs like Chlorhexidine, Levomekol and Solcoseryl are used.
Rehab
Ten to twelve days after the bruise has occurred (if complications do not develop), the rehabilitation period begins, which includes the following activities:
- Employment in physical therapy. A set of various exercises individually selected by the doctor should help the patient restore his motor functions of the spine.
- Performing medical massage. At the same time, its classic varieties are used (for example, manual action), or hardware ones (the influence of vibration, water, air flows).
- Performing myostimulation of the body. Such a procedure (it is carried out using modern equipment) helps in restoring the activity of muscle groups that have suffered paralysis or paresis.
Prevention
Most injuries that are associated with bruising of the thoracic sector of the spine occur due to various accidents, in connection with this, their prevention, first of all, consists in observing the basics of industrial and household safety. Do not neglect the conscientious adherence to traffic rules on the roads. To avoid such damage during sports, you need to correctly calculate the physical load. Experienced coaches who supervise the process of sports activities will help any person with this.
Thus, a spinal contusion is considered a stable injury to the post while maintaining the integrity of the support andspinal cord. But such injuries cannot be called light, since when people receive them, foci of hematomas and hemorrhages occur, necrosis (tissue death) can form, and there is a violation of the movement of cerebrospinal fluid through the spinal canal.
The incidence of bruising of the supporting column among all injuries of the motor system today is from three to ten percent. Mostly patients who have received such injuries are men up to forty to fifty years old. Bruises of the thoracic region of the spine in the elderly and children are quite rare, and women are injured with the same frequency as the representatives of the stronger sex.
About thirty-nine percent of all injuries, according to statistics, occur in the lower thoracic vertebrae. But in many cases, the cervical region also suffers. The main cause of chest contusion is motor vehicle accidents, which account for about sixty-five percent of all causes of such injury.
