My husband fell down our carpeted steps this morning and hit his back on the left side by his kidney. He is having a hard time walking and is complaining of a burning sensation. Could this be serious? I haven't been able to get him to go to the doctor yet. Does anyone have any idea of what damage could be caused or any advice on pain relief? I'm still trying to get him to go get it checked out but he insists it isn't necessary. He never complains about pain but today he is obviously in a lot of pain. Any suggestions or advice would be appreciated.
2007-11-30 03:00:48 · 2 answers · asked by Debbie 5 in Health ➔ General Health Care ➔ Injuries
I fell on July 4th and went to a local hospital. The doc didn't even bother to do a regular x-ray on me, SOP for a back injury. Three weeks later I was still in pain and went to see my GP. He sent me for an MRI which showed I have a fractured vertebra. I was put in a back brace and am now going for physical therapy for strengthen my back muscles.
Get thee to a hospital! It CAN be serious.
2007-11-30 04:26:11 · answer #1 · answered by LadyBug 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If he damaged the kidney, he will have blood in his urine - if this occurs a doctor visit is a good idea, but its not an emergency unless there is considerable blood loss.
The burning sensation may be a greater concern. Burning sensations are often caused by a pinched nerve where it emerges from the spine, but the burning could also occur from direct impact to the nerve outside the spine. He should watch out for back stiffness and pain near the spine. Falls like this can rupture a disc, which is not a serious problem, but it can cause chronic pain.
Its also possible that he could have broken a rib, but it doesn't look like he has symptoms of a broken rib (mostly sharp pain when lying in certain positions, or when coughing, laughing, or sneezing)
2007-11-30 11:27:46 · answer #2 · answered by formerly_bob 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋