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 Injuries to the spine can cause paralysis, so first aiders must treat suspected back injuries very carefully.
What are they?
The spine, or backbone, protects the spinal cord, which controls many body functions. Back injuries can be caused by pinching or displacement of nerves, or by spinal fracture.
Symptoms
Suspect a spinal injury after an awkward fall or awkward injury. Look for:
- Localised tenderness around the back or neck
- Shooting pains in casualty's limbs
- Limbs feeling heavy or tingling
- Loss of sensation in limbs below level of injury
- Breathing difficulties
First aid aims
- Prevent further injury
- Get casualty to hospital
Actions if casualty is conscious
- Do not attempt to move casualty
Call 999
- Offer reassurance
- Steady and support casualty's head in your hands
Actions if casualty is unconscious
- Check airway and breathing
- Place casualty in modified recovery position if you have help
Actions if casualty stops breathing
- Call 999
- Open airway
- Check for breathing again
- Give resuscitation until help arrives
Broken bones - child
Broken bones always need professional attention, but there's action you can take immediately to help the casualty.
Because children tend to put their arms out as they fall, arms, elbows and wrists are where breaks tend to occur.
Symptoms
- Intense pain
- Inability to use the limb
- Bruising or deformity at site of the break
Actions - broken arm
- Sit child down
- Ask them to support injured arm with other hand
- Put a pad between arm and chest
- Put injured arm in a sling
- Place a broad-fold bandage over sling and around arm and chest
- Take child to hospital
Actions - broken leg
- Lay child down and support leg at ankle and knee joints - by hand if an ambulance is expected soon, or on a chair if not
- Steady injured leg with padding
- Put rolled-up blankets outside injured limb and between legs
- Keep child warm
- Call 999
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