What Pelvic Pain After an Accident Could Mean

Pelvic injuries can occur in any car accident, even a low-impact collision. Those with osteoporosis or other bone-weakening conditions are particularly prone to pelvic injuries like fractures.

Pelvic injury can limit your ability to walk and can also result in life-threatening complications such as internal bleeding. If you are experiencing pelvic pain after a car accident, seek medical treatment immediately.

Our team at Impact Medical Sun City Center discusses what pelvic pain after an accident could mean.

Pelvic Pain + Injuries

The pelvis is made up of a major ring and two smaller rings. The smaller rings protect and support your internal organs such as your intestines and bladder.

Pelvic pain after an accident could be caused by a fracture, which can range from mild to severe based on the severity and its location. A fracture of the major ring is considered a severe injury, while a fracture to the smaller rings would be considered a mild injury. Sometimes the rings of the pelvis can have fractures in multiple locations.

Pelvic injuries often coincide with other injuries to the lumbar or sacral spine, the kidneys, bladder, liver, spleen, and other organs.

Further, females are more susceptible to experiencing traumatic pelvic floor dysfunction after being in a car accident than males. This impact to the pelvis and abdomen can damage the pudendal nerve or the pelvic floor muscles which can lead to pain and discomfort.

Diagnosing Pelvic Injuries

To assess the damage to your pelvis, a doctor may use x-rays, MRIs, and CT scans. Particularly complex injuries may require contrasting imaging tests. During these tests, doctors inject patients with a radioactive dye that allows them to see the damage to the internal organs and blood vessels.

Signs of a Pelvic Fracture

The most common symptoms of a pelvic fracture include pain that worsens with movement. Other signs of pelvic injury include:

• Difficulty walking or the inability to walk at all
• Pain that radiates from the pelvis to the abdomen
• Feeling numb or a tingling sensation in the pelvic area
• Unusual bleeding from the rectum or vagina which may be a sign of organ damage
• Trouble urinating
• Discomfort when standing

If you were in a car accident and are experiencing any of these symptoms, seek medical attention immediately.

Treatment for Pelvic Injuries

Your treatment plan depends on the severity and location of your pelvic injury. A minor fracture may require bed rest and anti-inflammatory medications and it could take anywhere from 8-12 weeks to heal from a minor pelvic injury.

A more severe fracture may require surgery that uses pins, screws, and plates to fuse your bones back together. Physical therapy will likely be necessary for you to regain your strength, mobility, and flexibility after pelvic surgery. It could take months to fully heal from a severe pelvic injury and subsequent surgery.

Pelvic Floor Therapy

If you are diagnosed with a pelvic floor injury after an accident, you will need to undergo pelvic floor therapy to help manual and relax the muscles that have been contracting since the injury occurred.

This therapy can be extremely uncomfortable both emotionally and physically. For women, it involves transvaginal stimulation of the pelvic muscles while for men, it involves perineal stimulation.

Despite any awareness, the right physical therapy can bring about substantial pain relief for anyone suffering from a pelvic floor injury.

Pelvic Pain Treatment

Are you experiencing pelvic pain after a car accident? Our physicians and physical therapy team at Impact Medical Sun City Center can examine your pelvis for signs of injury and develop a unique treatment plan to help you recover and heal.

Contact us today at 813-536-5892 to schedule an initial appointment with our compassionate health care team at Impact Medical Sun City Center!