Everyone occasionally falls. Most of the time falls cause only scrapes and bruises, but sometimes a split-second loss of footing can result in a painful injury. When it does, if home remedies like rest, ice, and over-the-counter painkillers don’t resolve the problem, contacting Long Island Spine Rehabilitation Medicine is your next best move. Our physiatrists are careful diagnosticians and offer a broad range of nonsurgical treatments to relieve your pain and return you to full function.
Musculoskeletal and Spinal Injuries Caused by Fall Injuries
Depending on how you fall and what part of your body bears the brunt of the fall, it is possible to injure a number of different bones, muscles, joints, ligaments, nerves, and tendons. Common fall injuries include:
- Fractures of arm, leg, ankle, wrist (as you try to break your fall),
- elbows, hips, knees, pelvis, and shoulders
- Strained tendons, sprained ligaments
- Dislocations and subluxations of joints
- Spinal fractures
- Nerve damage
Any of these injuries can be extremely painful, interfering with your ability to work, walk, lift or carry, and to enjoy your life. The physiatrists at all five of our Long Island offices are ready and able to help you regain strength and flexibility. If your fall injury requires surgery, we are prepared to assist you in preparing for the operation and recovering from it.
The Risks that Make Falls More Likely
Common causes of falls are:
- Wet or otherwise slippery floors
- Torn carpeting or unsecured scatter rugs
- Broken or chipped stairways
- Unmarked steps, especially in poorly lit areas
- Unstable ladders or step ladders
- Uneven terrain/unmarked holes on grass or pavement
- Unexpected obstacles
Of course, certain individuals are more likely to fall, and more likely to be seriously injured if they do, including those who have weakened bones due to osteoporosis, malnutrition or disease, are intoxicated or impaired by drugs, have poor balance or are wearing improper footwear.
The Importance of Accurate Diagnosis of Fall Injuries
If you take a serious fall, it is important to be thoroughly checked out by one of our competent physicians since some injuries don’t immediately show symptoms and some result in referred pain. In addition to giving you a physical exam, we will investigate fall injuries with whichever diagnostic equipment is necessary to determine the location and nature of your injury.
- Imaging tests: X-rays, CT scans, MRIs, ultrasound
- Electromyography (EMG) and nerve conduction studies
- Ultrasound-guided diagnostic and therapeutic injections
- Fluoroscopically guided injection procedures
Once we have discovered exactly what the problem is, we will move on to providing you with a personalized treatment plan to correct it. As holistic doctors, our goal is always the same: to relieve your pain and restore your ability to move freely, thereby improving your quality of life.
How We Will Help You Heal from Your Fall as Quickly as Possible
While you will require a certain amount of rest immediately after your injury, we know from extensive experience that the sooner we can get you up and moving, the more quickly you will recover. To that end, we will get you involved in physical therapy as soon as practicable, both to restore your strength in the affected area and restore your range of motion.
Unlike some doctors who treat fall injuries, the physicians at Long Island Spine Rehabilitation Medicine are dedicated to using multiple therapies in combination. We believe that using complementary as well as traditional treatment methods hastens the healing process, so we offer a variety of options to get you up and running, including:
- Acupuncture
- Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) to promote healing
- Steroid injections to relieve pain and inflammation directly at the source
- PEMF (Pulsed Electromagnetic Field) therapy to increase blood flow to your cells
- RFA (Radio Frequency Ablation) to deaden nerves causing the pain
Every individual is different, which is why we feel that it’s important to provide you with many possible treatments. We will leave no stone unturned when it comes to helping you recover completely from your fall injury. Contact our experienced fall injury experts today.