3 Ways to Evaluate the Neck for Spinal Cord Injury

1. Immobilize That Head

Neck injuries are one of the most serious of all trauma incidents. One unique issue with this type of trauma is that the victim may not realize that she has even injured the neck. She can then further complicate things by attempting to get up, move or look around. This can really cause further damage. Neck injuries often time manifest themselves in localized pain in other areas because of the nerves and the spine. So, a person may think that their neck is fine because they have no pain there, but their foot is numb and hurts. For these reasons, it is absolutely imperative that upon arriving on scene, someone grabs what is called "C-Spine" by placing their palms on either side of the victim's head and wrapping their fingers around the chin and neck of the victim. If conscious, the victim must be told to not attempt to move, especially their head. The person holding c-spine is now fully committed to holding this position until told to let go by a professional EMS personnel.

2. Palpitate That Neck

If the person holding C-spine is a trained EMS provider, he can palpitate the neck while holding C-spine. If not a professional provider, the arriving EMT or medic can palpitate the neck while the other person continues to hold C-spine. Palpitating the neck is merely running your fingers up and down the neck from the base of the skull to the top of the shoulders, applying a minimal amount of pressure. The patient will surely scream in pain if there is apparent injury (unless they are unconscious). While they may not scream, you may still determine this is a bad one by feeling that the cervical spine is not in line, or you feel the bone rubbing and grinding against bone.

3. Look For Visual Clues

Sometimes just visually inspecting the victim will alert you to a neck injury. Blackened eyes (both at the same time) is a good indication, as it cerebral leakage in the ear canal or through the nostrils. This also indicates severe head trauma, and such cases have extremely high morbidity rates. If the victim is male, chances are he is not really happy to be in this position, but his erection is actually a sure indicator that the first or second cervical vertebrae is broken. No matter what your physical or visual research indicates, in absolutely any situation where there is a trauma and the potential for neck or spinal injury is present, c-spine and immobilization should always be performed just to be safe.