Sustaining nerve
damage in a car accident is a fairly common occurrence.Nerve damage can occur
in your spine, limbs, and brain due to trauma and can significantly impact your
daily life activities. Besides, it can be challenging to diagnose and treat.
The nervous system is
fragile than you may realize, so you should always visit a doctor after an
accident if you get any nerve damage symptoms. Keep reading to learn what to do
to get the help you need.
What Is Nerve Damage?
There are 100 plus different
types of nerve damage–each type may show various symptoms and require different
treatment.Nerves help communicate different
areas of the body with each other. Because nerves control all you
do, nerve damage can badly affect your life.
How
a Car Accident Cause Nerve Damage?
While some car crashes only result
in minor injuries that go with the time, some result in life-threatening
injuries such as nerve damage––by
pressure or stretching of the nerve itself.
The most common car accident injuries that can cause nerve damage are
- Whiplash
- Blunt-force
trauma - Lacerations
What is Peripheral neuropathy?
It
refers to conditions that may damage your peripheral nervous system outside of
the brain and the spinal cord.Peripheral neuropathy often causes
weakness and pain, usually in hands and feet, and all other parts of the body.
Neuropathy can also be caused by a work
accident, repetitive motion injury, and trauma inflicted from a sports accident.
Whatever the situation is, three types of nerves can get pinched, compressed,
or stretched.
- Autonomic nerves–––it controlsyour overall body systems.
- Motor nerves–––it allows movement.
- Sensorynerves––it controls sensation.
Car
Accident Nerve Damage Symptoms
The victim of a car crash can get a wide array of symptoms,
however, depending on the type and location of affected nerves.
Symptoms related to Autonomic nerve damage include:
- Inability to sense chest pain––heart attack or
angina - Dry eyes and mouth
- Too much sweating or too
little sweating - Bladder dysfunction
- Constipation
- Lightheadedness
- Sexual dysfunction
Symptoms related to motor nerve damage include:
- Muscle atrophy
- Weakness
- Paralysis
- Twitchingalso called fasciculation
Symptoms related to sensory nerve damage include:
- Sensitivity
- Pain
- Tingling or prickling
- Burning
- Numbness
- Problems with positional awareness
What are the risk factors associated with peripheral
neuropathy?
Peripheral
neuropathy risk factors include:
- Vitamin deficiencies, particularly B
vitamins - Diabetes
- Infections, such as Epstein-Barr
virus, Lyme disease, shingles, HIV, and hepatitis B and C - Alcohol abuse
- Autoimmune diseases
- Repetitive motion
- Exposure to toxins
- Kidney, liver or thyroid disorders
- Family history of neuropathy
Peripheral Neuropathy Complications
- Infection––The victim’s hands and feet may lack sensation, as a result,
they might not feel pain in these areas. It is advisable to regularly check
these areas before they become infected––diabetes patients need to be extra
careful. - Burns and
skin trauma– the victim may become unable
to feel temperature changes on parts of the body that are numb. - Falls––Weakness may be associated with a lack of balance.
Peripheral neuropathy Prevention-Make healthy lifestyle choices
How to
manage underlying conditions?
The following habits may help
strengthen your nerve health:
- Exercise
regularly– Try to get at least one hour of
exercise daily or at least thrice a week. - Eat
rich––To protect yourself from Peripheral
neuropathy disorder, you must eat adiet
rich in fruits, vegetables, proteins, and grains to keep nerves healthy. Low-fat
dairy foods, meats, fish, eggs, and fortified cereals protect against vitamin
B-12 deficiency. You can have fortified cereals if you’re vegan, but talk to
your doctor about artificial supplements. - Avoid
factors that may damage your nerves––cramped
positions,repetitive motions that put pressure on nerves, smoking,drinking, and
exposure to toxic chemicals. - Check BP and glucose daily–If you
have hp BP or diabetes, monitoring them daily will help keep it under control
and might help you recover fast. - Avoid alcohol as it can worsen peripheral neuropathy.
- Quit smoking
Diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy
First, your
doctor will conduct a physical exam; ask how injury occurs, and then ask
about your medical history. If your condition doesn’t match those of peripheral
neuropathy symptoms, the doctor may perform one or more of the following test:
- Blood tests
give measurementsof your vitamin and blood sugar levels in the body.
Moreover, it helps to determine whether your thyroid is
functioning properly. - You may
need to go through a CT scan or MRI procedures to see if anything
is pressing on a nerve––herniated disk or a tumor. - The doctor can
also order a nerve biopsy, a minor surgery that removes a small
amount of your nerve tissue so that doctors can examine the areas under a
microscope.
Likewise, your doctor may perform Electromyography
or Nerve conduction study
in very rare cases.
Peripheral neuropathy treatment
The treatment for peripheral neuropathyis based on treating the underlying disorder. If
you’re suffering from a vitamin deficiency, then correcting the deficiency is
the treatment. If diabetes is the cause, you need to make sure that that the
blood glucose remains controlled. Sometimes a combination of treatments brings
relief and brings you back to life.
Over-the-counter pain medications
OTC medications
like acetaminophen and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen and
aspirin, can be very helpful in reducing the pain. But if you take them without
the doctor’s permission or in excess, these drugs can affect your body organs.
Anti-seizure
medications
Pregabalin
(Lyrica) and gabapentin (Gralise, Neurontin) may relieve your nerve pain. However,
many patients have reported side effects such as drowsiness and dizziness,
using these medications.
Therapies and
other Medical treatments
Your doctor can
use more than one medical treatment to control the symptoms of peripheral neuropathy.
- Physical therapy
- Plasma exchange and intravenous immune globulin
- Transcutaneous electronic nerve stimulation (TENS)
- Ergonomic casts or splints
- Surgery
Self-care
In addition to the
medications and treatments listed above, many people have found relief for this
condition through:
- chiropractic
care - meditation
- acupuncture
- massage
- yoga
If you smoke or
drink alcohol, consider cutting back immediately. Both tobacco and alcohol
aggravate nerve pain or damage when used for long periods.
Preparing
for your appointment
Treatment options are varied,but
only a trained medical professional can identify what type of nerve damage you are
suffering from and what treatment method will work best for your condition.
If you experience nerve damage after
a car accident, you should go to a doctorto be correctly diagnosed and treated.
Questions to ask your doctor
include:
- Is this condition temporary or permanent?
- What’s the cause of my symptoms?
- What tests do I need?
- Which treatment do you recommend?
- Are there any side effects of those treatments?
- How can I best manage other health
conditions with nerve damage? - Should I restrict activities?
Don’t hesitate to ask other questions.
Thank you for reading!
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