t-1 fracture, neck & upper back crooked
hi, it’s awesome what u r doing for people^^ I had a skateboard accident in 2013, which resulted in a skull fracture above my right ear. my chiropractor discovered on an x-ray that the tip of my t-1 bone was broken off. 5 months later, I carried a heavy bag on my right shoulder and the disc at the bottom of my neck slipped to the right. Ever since then, I have no actual comfortable position even lying on my back causes my spine from my neck down to my back to shift to the right. i’ve been told that the t-1 fracture is common and not a serious problem. here are my questions, any answers would be appreciated…would surgery to fix the t-1 fracture be wise to prevent neck/shoulder injury (such as the one I have now)? is the disc subluxation at the bottom of my neck particularly difficult to correct? can I place pads under specific areas of my back to promote correct spinal position while I am lying down? is there a recommended style of massage to complement or enchance chiropractic adjustments? thx, roger
2 comments
DC student
Wow roger lots of questions, I’ll see what I can help with.”5 months later, I carried a heavy bag on my right shoulder and the disc at the bottom of my neck slipped to the right. “Lets straighten this out first. Your disc doesn’t slip you have a protrusion (bludge) or a herniation (middle part gets outside of the rings of the disc and causes LOTS of irritation) both of which can only be diagnosed properly using an MRI. Neither of which happen just by picking something up, think of the lifting of the bag as the proverbial straw that broke a camel’s back (bad pun but it needed to be done). That disc has likely been under a lot of strain and due to things like poor posture, lack of rest time, and constant wear it was going to give out sooner or later. It just so happened that you lifting the bag pushed it over the edge. Either way most disc problems will alieviate themselves without surgery as well as with surgery, studies confirm this if you wish I can find them and put them on here. Your DC should be able to recommend certain muscle retraining exercises as well as stretching regiments that will help things along.”Ever since then, I have no actual comfortable position; even lying on my back causes my spine from my neck down to my back to shift to the right.”You may try putting your right hand, you did say the protrusion was on the right correct, on top of your head while seated. This is a common relief position for lots of people with cervical and upper thoracic disc problems. Your pain may be traveling down your arm as the T1 nerve is part of the brachial plexus which innervates the entire arm. Particularly the pain may reside in the skin on the inside of the arm and you may experience some loss of muscle strength in parts of your forarm.Your T1 fracture could mean lots of things, I am going to assume you broke off the tip of your spinous process, the back pointing part of the vertebra. Not a big deal there are interspinous ligaments that will hold it relatively still as well as a supraspinous ligament. Just avoid anymore skating falls to that area and you will be fine, no surgery should be needed.”is the disc subluxation at the bottom of my neck particularly difficult to correct?” No moreso than any other disc problem, though discs do not subluxate only vertebra or vertebral motor units are said to subluxate. Discs either protrude or herniate.”can I place pads under specific areas of my back to promote correct spinal position while I am lying down?” As I am still a student and haven’t had the classes needed to full understand the treatment of disc problems I cannot comment. See your DC and they can set up up with any helpful positions. Best of luck roger. Remember this disc problem built up over a period of time and will not correct itself overnight. The body heals but not instantly.
roger
hey DC student, thx for your answers to my questions, though its helped me think of a few more… I think I should include my whole ‘back’ story. i’ve been receiving chiropractic treatments since my ‘original injury’ in 2011,from numerous chiropractors and on an infrequent basis. my 2011 injury happened at the age of 17; I was lying on my left side and propped on my left elbow so I could read a magazine. at that time, I believe my t-1 herniated* because it left my entire upper body virtually paralyzed for 2 weeks. i’d say my 15 years of swimming as a right-side breather and playing sports as a left-hander helped my spine (t-1) to herniate to the left. my skateboard accident in 2013 and the lifting of the bag gave me my next ‘major’ injury; I suppose the c-7 injury was a herniation since it left me feeling almost paralyzed for 2-3 days. this c-7 injury also lowered my right shoulder. and some questions^^… I saw that u recommended an MRI for correct diagnosis; is there a specific kind, or is it termed as an MRI of the upper back and neck? are there different kinds of CAT scans as well (one of my chiropractors recommended it previously)? you’ve given me a dose of hope..perhaps an MRI would provide finally an accurate analysis for my back, particularly for my t-1 injury. since 2011 i’ve been to 6-7 different chiropractors, and this is the 1st time an MRI has been suggested :p