Emergency Treatment

Signs and Symptoms of Possible Spinal Cord Injury
• Extreme pain or pressure in the neck, head or back
• Tingling or loss of sensation in the hand, fingers, feet, or toes
• Partial or complete loss of control over any part of the body
• Urinary or bowel urgency, incontinence, or retention
• Difficulty with balance and walking
• Abnormal band-like sensations in the thorax - pain, pressure
• Impaired breathing after injury
• Unusual lumps on the head or spine

Ask the patient to grip your fingers with both hands and wiggle their feet

SPINAL STABILIZATION / IMMOBILIZATION SUMMARY

• Provide manual in-line immobilization
• Evaluate patient's responsiveness, ABCs, need for immediate resuscitation and check    motor, sensory and circulation in all four extremities.
• Examine the patient's neck and apply cervical collar
• Immobilize the patient's torso to the selected immobilization device such that the torso cannot move up, down, left or right.
• Evaluate torso straps and adjust as needed.
• Place an appropriate amount of padding behind head if needed for adult patients and under the thorax for pediatric patients (age 7 yrs or under) to maintain in-line spinal immobilization.
• Immobilize the patient's head.
• Once patient is immobilized, secure patient's arms and legs to the board or immobilization device.
• Reevaluate patient's responsiveness, ABCs, need for immediate resuscitation and check motor, sensory and circulation in all four extremities.

The Principles of Spinal Motion Restriction should include:
(a) manual motion restriction of the head and neck while assessing the ABC's;

(b) placement of the head and neck in neutral position when possible and not contraindicated;

(c) immobilization on a rigid spine board, with the use of an appropriately sized cervical extrication collar, a cervical immobilization device (C.I.D.) to anchor the head to the board, and an appropriate strapping system to secure the body to the board.