QuestionI was in a car accident a year and a half ago and have been having pains
in my chest.. I can't move my arms back to far,coughing hurts real bad,if
I move to fast it hurts,when I take a deep breath it hurts, to even yawn it
hurts. I had went to the ER the night of my accident and got an x-ray
done.. they said nothing and sent me on my way... after my chest burn I
got from my seat belt healed I noticed that the pain that hurt the most
wasn't from my burn but I wasn't told anything was wrong. Is there a
place I can go for answers? Will it ever get better?
Answerpain, broken sternum, staten island pain, possible broken sternum, chest pain, motor vehicle accident, fractured sternum, staten island motor vehicle accident, car crash, costosternal pain, staten island auto accident, rib separation, sternoclavicular separation,
Hello Neisha,
I am sorry to hear of your pain.
I am sorry to hear that you had an automobile accident one and a half years ago and are still suffering from the injury sustained.
First, you ask, "....Will it ever get better?.....". Will it ever get better--- well your car crash is 18 months ago, a full year and a half.... it has not gotten better.
I would say, unless you get an appropriate examination and proper treatment; no it will not get better.
You need to be re-evaluated by a new doctor or set of doctors.
You ask, "....Is there a place I can go for answers?.....", yes.
What doctors have you been to in the past for your auto accident?
My Staten Island Auto Accident patients have usually been to: 1) the emergency room of the local hospital, 2) their family MD who sends them to, 3) an Orthopedist MD to check for bone and joint injury, 4) a Neurologist MD who performs EMG/ncv tests for nerve damage- pinched nerves, radiculitus, neuritis, 5) perhaps a Pain Management MD, 6) if there is rehabilitation or therapy needed, a Physical Therapist may also be brought into the loop for weeks or months of treatment to the injured body part(s), 7) Somewhere in there the patient may also be referred to a Doctor of Chiropractic for evaluation and treatment- either referred by the MD, self-referred by the patient, or sometimes the Chiropractic Doctor may be the first Doctor a car crash victim sees- and the DC may start this (above) chain of referrals if necessary.
The first place you should go is to the hospital E.R. that looked at you immediately after the accident- get any and all tests/ records they have on you. You should contact any/ all of the doctors you saw after the injury for reports/ test results. Communicate with these professionals,,,, 'Why am I still hurting?'- certainly a valid question.
AFTER you gather up ALL of the information out there, schedule a new appointment with a new doctor to review the records and get a new evaluation as to why you are still hurting one and a half years after the injury.
I would recommend your local Doctor of Chiropractic. The DC often serves as a portal of entry into the appropriate healthcare professional. The Chiropractic Doctor may be able to evaluate you and treat you entirely him(her)self.
You may want a Chiropractor (DC) with an additional specialty, see: http://www.acatoday.org/pdf/ApprovedChiropracticSpecialtyPrograms.pdf You may want so see a sports injury specialist (DACBSP, like me!), or a Chiropractor with an orthopedic specialty, or perhaps a chiropractic neurologist http://lifechangingcare.com/ .
You may want to see a MD specialist. Wherever you go- you have to go somewhere to be evaluated, a proper diagnosis given, followed by appropriate treatment. It has been a year and a half, it is not going away.
".....I was in a car accident a year and a half ago and have been having pains in my chest.. I can't move my arms back to far,coughing hurts real bad, if I move to fast it hurts,when I take a deep breath it hurts, to even yawn it hurts. I had went to the ER the night of my accident and got an x-ray done.. they said nothing and sent me on my way......", so you went to the Emergency Room (E.R.) and got an Xray, and this is still hurting 18 months later,,,, who else have you gone to?, what have these people said?
Please, do not hesitate to ask questions/ communicate with the people who are seeing you IN PERSON; I cannot DX, PX from long distance!
If you have not seen anyone else.... go see someone in person.
Xrays check for broken bones, joint dislocations, bony problems. Perhaps you injured your chest where the ribs meet the sternum- the costo-chondral junction, perhaps you have a sterno-clavicular separation, perhaps there is some type of muscle tear.
Your chest hurts. Sometimes the Airbags and Seat Belts literally SAVE OUR LIVES- and they must be worn, but sometimes they can cause soft tissue damage, sprains/ strains/ separations that may not show up for a time after the accident, that may not show up on Xray.
Only a new evaluation can tell if you have an injury, if it is treatable, and by which discipline best.
Be careful with the pain,,,, do not JUST take pain medication---- get to the bottom of it, get to the cause of the pain, do not just treat the symptom of the pain. My Staten Island Pain Patients get the following information handout sheet, and this may be helpful to you:
PAIN
Pain is a 憆ed light on the dashboard?
RED LIGHT = Trouble !!
Pain is your body telling you that something is wrong. Think you should listen??
That RED LIGHT on the dashboard of your car-
-- do you ignore it until the car breaks down,
or do you get it checked and correct the problem?
Pain,
pain in your body-
-- do you ignore it until your body breaks down,
or do you get it checked and correct the problem?
Pain,
do you cover up the pain by taking a painkiller?
Take a painkiller,
mask the pain,
and allow a problem to progress in your body?
Pain Killing medication??? = 16,000 deaths ( probably under-reported )
DEATH ! ? ! ? better watch out on those medications!!!
NOTICE ON PAIN RELIEVERS:
Label changes ORDERED by FDA; the FDA announced proposed label changes for OTC over-the-counter pain relievers to include the potential for stomach bleeding and liver damage (FDA news 206- 207; 12-9-06) ;
SIXTEEN THOUSAND DEATHS: "Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are effective medications for the treatment of many chronically painful medical conditions. However, it is estimated that 25% of all serious adverse drug reactions involve NSAIDs, with more than 100,000 hospitalizations and 16,000 deaths occurring annually due to NSAID-induced gastrointestinal (GI) events."----- http://hhc.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/13/6/468 Home Health Care Management & Practice, Vol. 13, No. 6, 468-475 (2001) Motrin, Advil = NSAIDS
The American Heart Association issued a scientific statement recommending medical doctors change the way they prescribe OTC pain relievers from a first choice to an alternate of recommending non-pharmacologic treatment (AHA statement 2-26-07).
NSAID Acceleration of ARTHRITIS; an important side effect of Aspirin and other NSAIDS is that it will inhibit cartilage repair and accelerate cartilage destruction ( Journal of Rheumatology, 1982; 9: 3- 5 ). Many times people take NSAIDS for the pain of Arthritis, not realizing these drugs may make the underlying condition worse. These medications cover up the pain, and cause the problem to worsen.
http://rinf.com/alt-news/business-news/prescription-drugs-kill-300-percent-more-...
= An analysis of 168,900 autopsies conducted in Florida in 2007 found that three times as many people were killed by legal drugs as by cocaine, heroin and all methamphetamines put together. BE CAREFUL WITH THAT MEDICATION !!!
It was reported in 2000, that 700,000 U.S. citizens die as a result from medical causes (iatrogenics). Of course, other records and statistics had the number above the one million mark. Whether 700,000 or one million people, that's a lot of innocent people dying from visiting a hospital and trusting a medical doctor.= http://www.dherbs.com/articles/iatrogenics-99.html
Pain can often be the result of the Vertebral Subluxation Complex.
Vertebral Subluxation is actually a quite common condition. Doctors of Chiropractic look for pathological conditions which may require referral to other specialties, and also look for 慡ubluxation? Other disciplines look for pathology, but overlook the importance of alignment and movement in the spine which affects our nervous system (the master control system- ALL health disciplines learn this). VSC- 慡ubluxation??can be the cause of many symptoms and conditions.
Only a Doctor of Chiropractic will evaluate and treat for VSC, as well as other pathology.
The course of VSC is highly variable. Some patients with VSC literally cannot walk, yet other patients with similar test findings may be able to run marathons or lift heavy weights. Some patients immediately develop symptoms related to the VSC, some patients take years to develop symptoms. Some people suffer for only a few days with pain and symptoms, some people suffer for months. Some people recover in days, some take months or years, depending upon severity of the condition.
A subluxation interferes with the proper functioning of the nervous system (the master system which controls and coordinates all function within the body) and may cause various other conditions, symptoms and problems.
The Vertebral Subluxation Complex describes what happens when spinal bones lose their normal movement patterns and position. When subluxated, joints are in a stressed, vulnerable, compromised condition. Subluxation may cause Arthritis, Disk Herniation, or aggravate such conditions.
Vertebral Subluxation cannot be corrected through chemicals (medicine), stretching, yoga, vitamins or physical therapy alone. Subluxation- a neuro/skeletal/muscular- mechanical- problem requires a mechanical correction- - - a manipulation, best performed with the chiropractic adjustment.
Dr. Victor E. Dolan, Doctor of Chiropractic; Diplomate, American Chiropractic Board of Sport Physicians; Diplomate, American Academy of Pain Management; Certified Clinical Nutritionist (IAACN); FIRST Chief of Chiropractic in a Hospital in New York State (DHSI); As Seen in PREVENTION Magazine , Invited to Colorado Springs (Olympic Training Center) to Care for USA Olympic Athletes 2010
Chiropractor to the Championship NYPD Football Team, and the PSAL High School Football Champions (Curtis)
So, be careful of just taking medications- especially without a proper diagnosis! AGAIN- get evaluated in person.
Perhaps your pain started immediately with the auto accident, perhaps it took days or even weeks for the pain to come. Sometimes when we have a motor vehicle accident we start a process of inflammation, and sometimes that process of inflammation takes days or weeks to hit the 'pain point'!
In my Staten Island Chiropractic practice I have a handout sheet on Cervical Acceleration/ Deceleration injury
( A.K.A. 'whiplash' )
see especially: "......Sometimes 慦hiplash?symptoms can come immediately, sometimes days, weeks or even months after the actual trauma !........"
揥hiplash?
( Also Known As- Cervical Sprain/ Strain, CAD= Cervical Acceleration/ Deceleration Injury)
Sometimes a slip, trip, fall, heavy lift, or a motor vehicle accident can cause a 慦hiplash Injury? This can result in ligament sprain, muscle strain, and 憄inched nerves?
Often - the c a u s e of the neck stiffness and pain; a cause of stretched ligaments and muscle strain is a misalignment, a 慿ink?in the neck- more properly termed a Vertebral Subluxation.
Sometimes 慦hiplash?symptoms can come immediately, sometimes days, weeks or even months after the actual trauma !
Vertebral Subluxation Complex (a.k.a. 憇ubluxation?
The vertebral subluxation complex is the underlying cause of many healthcare problems.
A subluxation interferes with the proper functioning of the nervous system (the master system which controls and coordinates all function within the body) and may cause various other conditions, symptoms and problems.
This is a serious condition identified by its five parts:
Spinal Kinesiopathology:
This is fancy way of saying the bones of the spine have lost their normal motion and position. It restricts your ability to turn and bend. It sets in motion the other four components.
Neuropathophysiology:
Improper spinal function can choke, stretch, or irritate delicate nerve tissue. The resulting nerve system dysfunction can cause symptoms elsewhere in the body.
Myopathology:
Muscles supporting the spine can weaken, atrophy, or become tight and go into spasm. The resulting scar tissue changes muscle tone, requiring repeated spinal adjustments.
Histopathology:
A rise in temperature from an increase in blood and lymph supplies result in swelling and inflammation. Discs can bulge, herniate, tear, or degenerate. Other soft tissues may suffer permanent damage.
Pathophysiology:
Bone spurs and other abnormal bony growths attempt to fuse malfunctioning spinal joints. This spinal decay, scar tissue, and long-term nerve dysfunction can cause other systems of the body to malfunction.
The Vertebral Subluxation Complex describes what happens when spinal bones lose their normal movement patterns and position.
Automobile accidents, improper lifting, improper posture, alcohol, emotional stress, chemical imbalances, and long periods of sitting can cause the Vertebral Subluxation Complex.
Vertebral Subluxation cannot be corrected through chemicals (medicine), stretching, yoga, vitamins or physical therapy alone. Subluxation- a neuro/skeletal/muscular- mechanical- problem requires a mechanical correction- - - a manipulation, best performed with the chiropractic adjustment. For good health- Treat the Cause, not just the Symptoms.
Dr. Victor E. Dolan, Doctor of Chiropractic; Diplomat, American Chiropractic Board of Sport Physicians; Diplomat, American Academy of Pain Management; Certified Clinical Nutritionist (IAACN); FIRST Chief of Chiropractic in a Hospital in New York State (DHSI); As Seen in PREVENTION Magazine
I hope all of this information helps you.
You ask ".....Is there a
place I can go for answers? Will it ever get better?....."---
The place to go is your local Doctor!
With your description, I would not hesitate to recommend your local Doctor of Chiropractic.
I wish you good luck, and a speedy recovery to Good Health!
If further information is nedded, do not hesitate to contact your Staten Island Chiropractic Expert at:
http://www.allexperts.com/ep/965-100794/Chiropractors/Victor-Dolan-DC-DACBSP.htm
Thanks for the question,
Dr. Victor Dolan, DC, DACBSP
