Construction sites are dangerous places. In spite of all the safety measures taken by companies, supervisors, and workers, accidents resulting in injuries are common among those who do construction work. At Long Island Spine Rehabilitation Medicine, where healing spinal and musculoskeletal injuries is our forte, our doctors have a great deal of experience treating construction injuries.
If you have suffered a construction injury and would like to explore your nonsurgical options, contact one of our 5 conveniently located Nassau or Suffolk County offices. Our skilled physiatrists will use the most advanced diagnostic procedures available to determine the precise cause of your problem, and will then craft a treatment regimen customized to meet your specific needs.
Because our practice is holistic, our doctors offer a wide range of treatment methods, both traditional and complementary, and use them in combination to achieve the best results.
When you come to Long Island Spine Rehabilitation Medicine, you will always be treated as the unique person you are, not as a composite of discrete body parts. We never lose sight of our primary goal — to help you heal as quickly as possible and to improve your quality of life during the process.
How Construction Injuries Happen
As noted earlier, even under excellent supervision, construction sites are hazardous compared to most workplaces since they are usually full of:
- Uneven terrain
- Large, earth-moving vehicles
- Heavy materials and equipment
- Scaffolds and ladders
- Debris and building materials dotting the ground
In such an environment, it is all too easy to get hurt by:
- Slipping, tripping, or falling, on the ground or from a height
- Lifting and carrying heavy materials or tools, often repeatedly or for long periods
- Having heavy objects accidentally fall on you
- Using repetitive motions, such as lifting or reaching, to the point of serious strain
Fortunately, specially designed clothing and gear offer some protection for construction workers, but the chance of suffering a construction injury remains all too real. That’s why patients in the profession who come to us are grateful to have trustworthy, highly trained doctors they can turn to and are relieved to know that we offer same-day appointments when urgent care is required.
Common Construction Injuries
While catastrophic construction injuries are thankfully rare, construction workers frequently deal with less disastrous, though still painful, and often disabling, injuries of the spine, muscles, and joints, including:
- Strains that occur when muscles or tendons (bands that attach one muscle to another), are stretched beyond their natural limits
- Sprains that occur when ligaments (that attach muscles to bone) are pulled beyond their natural limits
- Tears or ruptures of muscles, tendons, or ligaments
- Pinched nerves that most often occur in the shoulder or neck (cervical spine, the upper chest (thoracic nerves), or lower back (lumbar nerves)
- Fractured or dislocated joints (e.g. shoulders, knees)
- Repetitive strain injuries that can result from repeating the same movement again and again (e.g. lifting and reaching) or being subjected to repetitive vibrations (e.g. using a jackhammer) or repeated compressions
Symptoms of Construction Injuries Can Assist in Accurate Diagnosis
While pain almost always accompanies construction injuries, our physiatrists can learn a lot about the nature of your injury by the type of pain or other symptoms you’re experiencing. For example, a pinched nerve can manifest not only as pain, but as tingling, numbness, and weakness. In many cases, our doctors can get a reading on the type of injury you have by which kinds of movements worsen your pain.
Our Cutting-Edge Diagnostic Equipment Helps Us to Diagnose Construction Injuries
We know that precise diagnosis is the first step to successful treatment, so we use the most innovative methods available to pinpoint spinal and other musculoskeletal injuries. These methods include:
- X-rays, CT scans, MRIs, ultrasound
- Electromyography (EMG) and nerve conduction studies
- Ultrasound-guided Injections into musculoskeletal tissue
- Fluoroscopically-guided epidural steroid injections
- Diagnostic medial branch blocks
- Fluoroscopy-guided facet injections
- Discography
How Our Physiatrists Treat Construction Injuries Without Surgery
The doctors at Long Island Spine Rehabilitation Medicine are specially trained to address pain and dysfunction problems. We may use one or several of the following therapies to relieve your discomfort and restore your mobility:
- Acupuncture to reduce inflammation, lessen pain, and increase blood flow
- Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) to accelerate healing
- Physical therapy, including electrical stimulation, to restore strength, flexibility, and range of motion
- Corticosteroid/lidocaine injections to relieve pain and inflammation directly at the source (When such injections are epidurals or facet injections used to diminish or eliminate back pain, we administer them under fluoroscopic guidance. When these injections are used in joints and muscles in other parts of the body, we administer them under ultrasound guidance.)
- PEMF (Pulsed Electromagnetic Field) therapy, which, in addition to treating pain and inflammation, increases blood flow to your cells to promote more rapid healing
- Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) to deaden nerves that are causing unrelieved pain
The Advantages of Having Your Constructions Injuries Treated By Our Physiatrists
Although our doctors will certainly refer you to well-respected surgical colleagues if necessary, we regard surgery, with its risks and potential complications, as a last resort.
We are firmly committed to healing your injury without an operation if possible. Not only are we open to a great many minimally invasive procedures and alternative therapies that other doctors may not explore, but we have a remarkable history of successful outcomes.
We also approach our patients with a collaborative mindset. We will involve you in the decision process about which treatments to use in your case, knowing full well that you know your own body better than we do and will be drawn to the treatment methods most likely to help.
Contact Our Experienced Construction Injury Doctors Now
You will find us to be caring as well as highly competent when it comes to restoring your health. Like you, we are focused on relieving your pain and renewing your mobility as quickly as possible. We know you are as committed to your work as we are to ours and will help you heal using the latest, most effective methods. Contact us today so you can start feeling better tomorrow.