ABSTRACT
Spinal injuries are uncommon, when compared with other conditions. Causes include road traffic incidents, falls, sports injuries and penetrating wounds. The forces to which the spinal column is subjected during injury can be compression, flexion, extension, distraction, rotation and shearing. The consequent damage will depend upon the level of the spine exposed to such energies and whether they act in isolation or combination. The principal concern with a spinal injury relates to any possible damage to the spinal cord and, to a lesser extent, the nerves issuing from it. The symptoms from which a spinal injury victim may complain are, for the most part, restricted to local pain, plus awareness of any loss of motor or sensory function. Signs of underlying skeletal damage may include local bruising, swelling, tenderness or deformity but the capacity to search for such signs may be limited, particularly in the victim of polytrauma. Neurological examination is needed as soon as practically possible.
