Pelvic Injury on an Elderly, Essay Example

Pelvis injury is notably realized when a particular part of the skin surrounding the pelvic becomes swollen and appears to be bruised. Relatively, to respond to the situation, it is most often than not a reflex on the part of the patient to keep the hip or the knee bent just to alleviate the pain. There is also a notable occurrence of bleeding that can relatively lead to shock hence making it hard to retain the stability of the patient’s situation. The reason for the occurrence of such symptoms specifically come from the fact that the pelvic bone receives a particular type of trauma causing it to swell, bruise or even bleed. The pelvic is noted to be a collective structure of bones that is located at the lower end of the trunk. The pelvis is divided into two particular parts consisting of three bones; the illium, the ischium and the pubis. These three bones are noted to grow as the human body develops. To make the pelvic bone stronger, there are specific points in the bone that serves as connective tissues that join the entire setup of the bone to the a large triangular bone called the sacrum. These connective tissues are called ligaments. The triangular bone is then connected to the base of the spine. The bowl-like cavity serves as a cage to particular key parts of the body including the some of the digestive and the reproductive organs. Several large nerves are also found to pass through the pelvic area. During an injury, the most crucial point to note is when the stress or the pressure affects the connection of the pelvic bone to the spine as this would disrupt several body-functions that are important to be given notable attention to. The muscles are supposed to protect the whole setup of the pelvic bone from any pressure incase fracture occurs, nevertheless, in cases when the patient is noted to have weaker muscles, such injuries could be life threatening. It is because of this fact that any particular fracture on the area could mean serious damage for the patient which could cause the bleeding and swelling altogether.

The elderly are most often than not at risk to such fractures because of the lack of balance that they have on their body. Relatively, such condition makes it a lot easier for them to lose control, thus falling or accidentally getting bumped which most often than not injures their pelvic area. When such accidents occur among the elderly, the inured area should be given attention to immediately to avoid specific points of further pressure on the area concerned. Since the patient is an elderly individual, the primary diagnosis procedure shall include a check up on the patient’s medical history. X-ray and CT scan operations might be needed to make sure that there is no existence of internal bleeding. Since the injury is inside, it could be noted that there are some bleeding occurrences that might even go unnoticed or might be invisible to the eye. The scans are supposed to be taken from different angles to make sure that nothing is overlooked during the check up. To gain closer look on the area injured, CT or computer tomography scan is most often than not more reliable than the ordinary x-ray. This way, the nerves and the blood vessels could be well captured in visual presentation thus making it easier for the physician to take note of the gauge of the pressure on the pelvic bone brought on by the fall.

Since the patient is an elderly individual, it is important to take note of what specific treatment would best fit the capacity of the person involved. Relatively, dealing with much painful treatments is out of the choices. Non surgical treatments such as therapies through the use of walking crutches is essential to the process, this will likely reduce the pressure from the pelvic area thus making it easier for the patient to recover properly from the injury. In cases when the area needs to be realigned, surgery might be needed. During this particular time, it is essential that the patient [elderly individual] be given the most comfortable process possible to reduce stress on the part of the patient thus making the recovery process much easier to accommodate.

Reference

Walker, J (2011 Nov 9-15). “Pelvic fractures: classification and nursing management.”. Nursing standard (Royal College of Nursing (Great Britain) : 1987) 26 (10): 49–57; quiz 58.