Question
Around 30 years ago I was in the army when I had a vehicle accident and got a whiplash.
A few months later I was riding on an armoured personnel carrier when the vehicle went into a ditch and the cargo hatch came loose and struck me in the middle of the back. The vehicle moved forward then again stopped suddenly, this time I was sideways and the cargo hatch again hit me and tried to make my shoulders meet in the middle.
From that time I experienced varying degrees of breathing difficulties.
Initially this was accepted as being related to the accident.
Now I have been told that there is no relationship between spinal trauma and breathing problems and that I must have asthma.
The asthma puffers do very little to assist.
Is there any relationship between spinal injuries and breathing difficulties?

Answer
Hi John,

Spinal injuries, especially in the thoracic spine [mid-back] can lead to breathing difficulties. Your ribs attach to your thoracic spine so when the the thoracic spine is injured, this can affect the movement of your ribs. In order for you to breath without difficulty, your ribs need to be able to move effectively. If they are not able to move effectively because of an injury to your back, this can cause pain when you try to take in a full breath. Over time this begins to affect your diaphragm (large breathing muscle), intercostal muscles (smaller breathing muscles) and back muscles which results in strain every time your try to take a full breath.

Did you have x-rays when you were injured 30 years ago? Small fractures in the ribs can also lead to lifelong breathing difficulties. Also, because some of the nerves that go to your chest muscles come from your thoracic spine, injury to those nerves can affect your breathing.

So to answer your question, yes there is definitely a relationship between spinal injuries and breathing difficulties.

I would recommend that you see your family doctor or a Chiropractic doctor to determine whether the cause of your breathing difficulties are related to ribs/muscles/thoracic spine.

I hope this helps!

Dr. Liza