Fracture of the spine help please doctors or anyone one with experience?
Question:
my dad had a accident over 40 years ago left him with 2 metal plates in his back and a part of the spine missing..
about 23 years ago he had a motor bike accident and his back was injured again damaging the metal plates,,,,,
ok so for the past 4 months he has been in agony it all started out with just a sore back like his normal sore backs but it started geting worse... one night he was painting he is a (painter and decorator) and he didnt feel to good he turned gray and his eyes were rolling he didnt pass out but was very close to it... he went to the doc with his back who done an x-ray and noticed he has 2 fractures in his spine his metal plates are snapped bent and the bolts are bent aswell...he is in really bad pain he cant sleep or eat and is bent over allmost looking at the floor when he walks...
they put him on morphine to kill the pain he had to stop taking some because they were causing bowl trouble.
Answers:
Alot of the weight loss could just be loss of appetite from being in such severe pain. Also, he could be getting to the age where he starts getting arthirits from several things, one being age, two being wear and tear from his carreer, third from all the previous injuries. Now that the plates are fractured they might be putting pressure on his spinal cord or on individual nerves. The MRI will be very informative.
Yes, back and spine damage can be devastatingly painful and can cause nerve problems and bowel and bladder problems as well.
Maybe he can take some stool softener or something to help with the bowels, I feel he should take pain medicine if he is hurting so much.
So, no need to look for other causes of the symptoms, his injury is severe enough on its own. So you shouldn't worry about that. Yes, it is possible (a very small chance) for him to have some bone cancer or something, but I'm sure they would have found that with the tests they are taking, and he probably doesn't have any cancer, because lightning doesn't strike twice in the same place, right?
Hope he feels better soon
it could be many things..
i dont know whats best to suggest because i cant diagnose people over the internet basically i fractured a vertibre (c3 in my neck) and i still get pain now...
if he has had plates inserted then thats a different story it may be the plate causing pressure or simply pain from his previous injuries...
basically get him comfortable as possible tell him to not do anything strenuous and to take ibruprofen and any other pain relief paracetamol..
he need to see a doctor asap to be honest because the quicker the better.. the pain down the back of the legs could be from sciatica (nerve endings) that are getting pressure put on them by the spine having to deal with the fact the plates are bent..
best thing to do is like i say
painkillers
warm towel placed behind him
good sleeping position
massage (if its not too painful)
small meals (something light like toast soup etc.)
hope this helps let me know how he's doing all the best,.
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