Question
i had a neck/back injury 11 years ago. around sept-oct of 98.  i was hospitalized and told i had dislocation in my neck and in my lower back.  i remember taking 2 flights of stairs into a mirrored wall to save my 3 year old son from falling down them.  now that its 2008, i have been having more problems.  i have numbness in my neck, shoulders, up the back of my head, major tailbone pain, legs go numb.  leaving me with head aches, and just all around joint pain all the way to wrist's and ankle's hurting me.  now im only 30 years old. my neck will pop 3-4 times when i turn my head either way.  but my biggest problem is now im having memory loss. things i should remember like my kids birthdays, doctor appointments, ill even forget the daily things like eating, or how to turn on the t.v.  i have blacked out in mid walk which caused me to break my pinky and ring finger and my wrist when i fell. i find myself lost when i drive which is scary.  could this be from my back/neck injury or am i going mental?

Answer
Dear Robbie,

Yes I would definitely opine that the numbness and tingling is a direct result of the previous trauma, however, the memory based symptoms and blacking out would not be considered to have a direct relationship to the injury itself.  It is likely that you also had a brain injury that was undocumented or undiagnosed.

It really doesn't matter what the cause is at this point though.  The main thing you need to due now is get an examination.  A chiropractic physician is a good choice for management of the musculoskeletal issues if they are a result of the spine trauma which is highly likely.  For the memory and blacking out symptoms need a referral though. I would recommend that you seek out the advice and care of a neurologist so that this can be investigated properly.  They will probably want to perform an MRI of the brain as well to see if they can find any abnormality in the brain tissue to explain your symptoms.

Multiple sclerosis is one condition that comes to mind due to your age, and this has been documented to occur in a slightly higher percentage of head and neck injured individuals.  But it usually presents with vision symptoms and transient neurological defects that seem to improve, rather than memory issues.  Anyway, just make sure that you follow-up and have it checked out ASAP.  No matter what the cause, the faster you get it diagnosed the better.  Good Luck.

Respectfully,
Dr. J. Shawn Leatherman
www.suncoasthealthcare.net