What are fractured vertebrae?

Commonly, spinal vertebrae fractures are broken vertebra bones caused by traumatic incidents, such as a car accidents, falls or high-contact sport. Fractures can occur in any of the three regions along your spine:

These are often determined by X-rays or CT scans to locate the area and severity of the fracture. MRIs are also helpful in understanding how soft tissue and muscles surrounding the fracture may have been affected.

What are the causes?

Fractures of spinal bones can affect its surrounding area by compressing nerves or damaging the spinal cord. There are typically four common types of fractures:

• Compression fracture – caused by non-traumatic injuries/conditions which weaken the bone, such as osteoporosis, tumours and other conditions.
• Wedge fracture – similar to a compression fracture, this occurs when the vertebral body has suffered a crush/wedging injury which exceed the bone’s ability to support the load, the crush forming a wedge shape.
• Axial Burst fracture – caused by a fall from a significant height and landing on the feet, in turn destabilising the spinal cord and triggering a fracture
• Chance fracture – also known as a ‘seat-belt injury’, this occurs when the body is violently flung forward while the lower body is stabilised, causing the vertebrae to pull apart

What are the symptoms?

Treatment for fractured vertebrae

It is always important to go to your nearest Emergency Department as soon as you can if you feel that you have fractured your vertebrae or have had a traumatic accident which may have injured your back. They will be able to accurately diagnose your injury and order any relevant scans which tell you more about the fracture.

Treatment for fractured vertebrae depend on the severity of the injury – physical therapy and bracing may be enough for mild fractures, whereas surgical procedures may be necessary for more serious fractures.

At Vitalis Physiotherapy, we carefully tailor a unique treatment plan to encourage rehabilitation and reduce pain from vertebral fractures. This is done through:

• Soft tissue mobilisations (massage) distal to fracture initially, then at injury site
• Cores strengthening techniques
• Movement and Balance exercises
• Home exercise and self-management techniques
• Joint mobilisation (after prolonged treatment)
• Heat therapy
• Dry needling
• Taping
• Shockwave Therapy for chronic pain related to historic fractures
• Graded Exposure to load program

The rehabilitation period depends on the severity of the fracture. It is important that you do not engage in strenuous activity or sport as this may worsen or aggravate the condition.

How to book an appointment?

If you have a fractured vertebrae and are looking for physical therapy options, our physios at Vitalis Physiotherapy, a ‘physiotherapist near me’, can assess your condition to tailor a unique rehabilitation plan to aid in your pain relief and recovery. They may also refer you to get scans in some severe cases to better understand your needs.

All you need to do is just give us a call on 0410 559 856 and request an initial appointment. Please let our friendly reception staff know the background and severity of your condition.

You can visit our FAQs for more information about appointments at Vitalis Physiotherapy.