A scoliotic spine curves and rotates unnaturally, and because the spine's healthy curves make the spine stronger, more flexible, and better able to absorb shock, an unhealthy curve can make the spine weaker and more vulnerable to injury, less flexible, and less able to evenly absorb and distribute force from impact.
A car accident can aggravate scoliosis by exposing the spine to a sudden jarring impact. A jolting force can strain the spine, supportive ligaments, muscles, discs, and/or cause compression fractures. Car accidents can aggravate pre-existing scoliosis, and in some cases, may cause the onset of traumatic scoliosis.
Car accidents can exert intense pressure and strain on the spine, so immediate assessment following a crash is always recommended for scoliosis patients.
If a sudden impact strains the body and/or spine, even minor car accidents can have significant effects on a person's health/scoliosis.
Many people, including those without scoliosis, experience back and neck pain following a car accident, and people with scoliosis are more vulnerable to back pain and injury because of the uneven forces of the condition.
Different types of car accidents are associated with a number of injuries, and when it comes to spinal strain and injury, a sudden rear impact is associated with whiplash and cervical spine (neck) strain. High-speed collisions are more closely linked with spinal fractures in the lumbar spine (lower back). Rollover accidents can cause widespread injury and effects including multiple vertebral fractures in the largest spinal section: the thoracic spine (middle/upper back).
It's impossible to predict how a particular car accident will affect a driver/passenger, and/or their scoliosis, but it is helpful to be aware of the risks and seek immediate assessment following an accident.
Damage from a car accident can include the spine, nerves, discs, muscle and ligament strain, and even compression fractures. Injuries from a car accident may cause long-term pain and changes to spinal health, reduced mobility, and curve progression in some scoliosis patients.
In most cases, scoliosis is progressive, and there are a number of factors that shape a patient's rate of progression including how much support and stability the spine gets from its surrounding muscles and ligaments.
The spine's healthy curves are key to its overall health, and the spine needs support and stability from its surrounding muscles and supportive structures, so if a car accident strains and/or injures the spine's surrounding muscles, the loss of spinal support may aggravate the scoliosis and trigger progression.
Muscle strain and injury that causes a loss of spinal support can make it harder for the spine to maintain its straight position, and in cases of pre-existing scoliosis, uneven support can contribute to curve progression.
In children, growth is the main cause of progression, and in older adults, it's changing spinal/bone health.
Many scoliosis curves will increase over time, and part of leading a scoliosis-friendly lifestyle is practicing healthy habits that minimize the risk of progression, and in some cases, this includes activity restrictions such as sports that involve repeating jarring impact.
While it's somewhat easy for scoliosis patients to avoid football, horseback riding, and certain activities considered too risky for the spine, driving and riding in vehicles is part of daily life for most people.
If a collision has caused muscle spasms and/or a loss of support, it may cause scoliosis to increase. If a severe impact causes a muscle tear or strains the muscles that support the spine, one-sided spasms may develop, and because a scoliotic spine curves to the side, the one-sided spasms can pull the spine further to the side.
Soft-tissue damage can also cause the spine to shift further out of alignment due to a lack of structural support.
There are a number of factors that shape a person's spinal health, one of which is disc health.
The spine's ability to stay aligned is supported by a number of spinal structures, and the spine's surrounding muscles, working together.
An intervertebral disc sits between adjacent vertebrae (bones of the spine), and the discs serve a number of key functions. They act as the spine's shock absorbers, give structural support, combine forces to increase the spine's flexibility, and prevent friction during movement so vertebrae aren't rubbing against one another and degenerating faster.
Because the discs act as the spine's main shock absorbers, if they are exposed to sudden impact, they absorb the majority of the shock. An injured disc may degenerate faster and become a bulging and/or herniated disc.
Symptoms of disc injuries to watch for can include pain around the injured disc, stiffness, muscle weakness, and chronic pain.
Scoliosis treatment plans need to be customized because scoliosis can range widely and progress at different rates, and there are also different types with unique causes.
Most patients are diagnosed with idiopathic scoliosis (no known cause), and scoliosis caused by trauma are rare cases, but a high-speed collision can cause poor spinal health by rupturing discs, damaging muscles, and fracturing vertebrae.
A fractured vertebra is cracked or broken and can range from a small crack to a full break caused by the type of crushing impact that can occur in a collision.
Rear-end collisions and high-speed rollovers are high-impact and capable of causing structural damage to the spine such as cracking and/or crushing spinal bones.
If a car accident causes severe soft tissue and/or nerve damage, muscles on one side of the spine may spasm and/or weaken, and core and back muscles that are unbalanced can't support the spine evenly from both sides, and if one of more vertebra are fractured, traumatic scoliosis may occur.
In some cases of mild pre-existing curves, a bad car accident can cause a small asymptomatic curve to worsen and start causing noticeable symptoms.
Signs of scoliosis and/or curve progression to watch for include increasing postural changes such as uneven shoulders and hips, pain, and mobility changes.
Immediate assessment following a car accident is recommended for everyone because injury and strain don’t always cause immediate symptoms, but for people with scoliosis, it’s particularly important that the spine is evaluated.
Patients in a car accident with pre-existing scoliosis need to have their curve assessed for changes. This usually involves an X-ray to gain a complete and accurate picture of the spine’s overall health.
Comparing X-ray images from before and after an accident looks for changes to the spine’s alignment, disc health, muscle health, and instability that may indicate a crack or break.
There are a number of factors considered in scoliosis management, one of which is a patient’s risk of curve progression, so if an accident has weakened the spine and/or its surroundings and contributes to the scoliosis increasing, a patient's new risk of progression needs to be factored into treatment.
Conclusion
While people with scoliosis can lead normal healthy lives, their spines are more vulnerable to injury and strain due to its misalignment.
A car accident can aggravate scoliosis by increasing muscle strain and imbalance, injuring discs, soft tissue, nerves, and serious injuries may include vertebral fractures that weaken the spine significantly.
Scoliosis patients benefit from close monitoring because as a progressive condition, it can change quickly, and if growth is occurring and/or declining spinal health, children and older adults, in particular, are more at risk for curve progression.
In extreme accidents involving a crushing force, multiple cracks and/or breaks in the spine's vertebrae can cause a shift in the spine's alignment and stability and cause the onset of traumatic scoliosis.
If a scoliosis patient has sustained a back injury, immediate evaluation by a healthcare professional is needed to assess the traumatic injury, monitor progression, and determine the best treatment options.
Here at the CLEAR Scoliosis Institute, patients with pre-existing scoliosis are comprehensively assessed following a car accident to determine if there is an increased risk of curve progression and/or injury that needs to be addressed, and in cases of a car accident causing traumatic scoliosis, the spine's long-term health and instability are considered in treatment recommendations.
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