Spinal cord injury
The spinal cord runs from the base of the brain down to the lower back, connecting the brain to the rest of the body. Its role is to carry messages from the brain, known as motor commands, via nerves to the extremities, and also to return sensory information back to the brain.
Are all spinal cord injuries serious?
Injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident to the spinal cord caused by damage to the vertebrae, ligaments or disks are extremely serious, and may cause paralysis in some or all parts of the body – it plays a vital role in how the human body moves.
Your ability to retain control of your limbs after a spinal cord injury depends on two factors: where the injury occurred on your spinal cord and the severity of injury. The severity of the injury is often called "the completeness" and is classified either as complete, or incomplete.
If all feeling and all ability to control movement are lost below the spinal cord injury, the injury is called complete. If there is some motor or sensory function below the affected area, the injury is called incomplete.
If you've suffered a spinal cord injury following a motorcycle accident, almost every aspect of your life may be affected. You might feel the effects of your injury mentally, emotionally and socially.
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Types of Motorbike Accident Injuries
Muscle strain or bruising
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Back strain following a motorbike accident
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Degloving injury resulting in loss of an extensive area of skin
Degloving happens when a section or area of skin, with or without the underlying soft tissue, becomes wholly or partially detached from the body, a bit…
Burns
Heat burns occur when some or all of the cells in the skin or other tissues are destroyed by hot liquids, hot solids (such as a hot exhaust pipe), or flames.…
Road rash
How painful is road rash? Road rash can affect any part of the body and there are varying levels of severity. Light road rash, affecting the top of layer…
Facial fractures
If there’s one type of motorcycle accident that might encourage riders to wear a full-face crash helmet as opposed to an open-face helmet, it's facial…
Scarring
When the skin is wounded, the tissues break apart, which causes a protein called collagen to be released. Collagen builds up where the tissue is damaged,…
Serious limb injury
Which limb is the most vulnerable for motorcyclists? The leg is one of the most vulnerable parts of the body for motorbikers and accounts for around 30%…
Amputation
Motorbike accidents that have resulted in this form of severe trauma are often very serious road traffic incidents, and the effects can be devastating…
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