Experiencing a traumatic event is bad enough, but living with ongoing pain or physical dysfunction makes things even worse. Fortunately, an orthopaedic trauma specialist can provide the help you need to help you heal, so you don’t need further intervention.
Dr. Eric E. Johnson is an orthopaedic trauma specialist leading his own practice in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. He has skills in all aspects of orthopaedic trauma surgery, including advanced training in pelvic and acetabular fracture surgery from the Centre Medico-Chirurgical de la Porte de Choisy and the University of Paris.
Abdominal injuries can be difficult to detect during your initial treatment after an assault, but Dr. Johnson can help.
In an ideal world, a doctor could diagnose and fix all your injuries in a single visit.
Unfortunately, traumatic events like assault typically damage multiple components of your musculoskeletal system at one time, and the nature of the event can make the damage far more severe. For example, a car accident can crush or shatter a bone — not just break it — and damage surrounding soft tissue at the same time. This complexity makes them more difficult to detect and treat.
As you can imagine, sustaining trauma to the abdomen can be especially challenging. It can cause immediate damage to soft tissue, like muscles and organs, blood vessels, and bones. You can also suffer abdominal injuries that cause problems later on, like intestinal blockages and hematomas.
Doctors typically classify abdominal injuries into two categories: blunt or penetrating.
These injuries occur because of direct blows or impact, so there may not be an obvious sign of a problem at first.
Penetrating injuries break the skin, like gunshot wounds or stabbings.
Abdominal injuries may not be apparent in the moment, especially if the individual has other painful injuries, like fractures, or isn’t conscious. However, doctors typically diagnose abdominal injuries through imaging tests, urine analysis, or exploratory surgery if an injury is obviously severe.
When treating traumatic injuries, trauma specialists typically start with the most life-threatening first so that they can stabilize the patient. At that point, they can focus attention on secondary issues in the abdomen.
It’s also important for people with blunt abdominal traumas but no diagnosed injury to undergo follow-up exams to ensure issues don’t arise later.
If you still have problems following your traumatic injury, Dr. Johnson can help.
First, Dr. Johnson reviews your medical history and treatments to date. Then he performs a comprehensive exam to identify outstanding issues, so he can outline the best treatment strategy to address your symptoms. One specific service he offers is tertiary reconstruction.
Tertiary reconstruction involves reconstructing a specific area of the musculoskeletal system, including:
These specialized procedures can help restore function, improve stability, and correct deformities caused by trauma or failed medical procedures.
To learn more about Dr. Johnson’s orthopaedic trauma care services, call his office in Los Angeles, California, to schedule a consultation today.
