Warriors’ Steve Kerr Shows How Dangerous Back Injuries And Surgery Can Be
The NBA basketball season is about to start again, and the defending champion Golden State Warriors are in many of the NBA headlines. The Warriors are coached by head coach and former player Steve Kerr.
When you see Kerr on the sideline, he seems healthy and athletic. But Kerr has a history of a bad back problem, and complications from medical procedures, that tell a story of how bad back injuries can really be to even the most able bodied of us.
The Initial Surgery
In 2005, Kerr underwent surgery for a ruptured disc in his spine. This was expected; Kerr was, after all, a lifelong professional athlete with wear and tear on his body. What wasn’t expected was the long, arduous recovery and complications that arose after the surgery.
The surgery itself is certainly serious, but is also routinely performed, and one that many doctors perform; many doctors and studies have found that surgical intervention has a better long term recovery than non-surgical treatments, which tend to only provide temporary relief, when it comes to back disc injuries.
The Complications After Surgery
In the days after his surgery, Kerr had some odd side effects. His back did not hurt as much, so Kerr has no reason to suspect there had been any problems with the back surgery.
But Kerr was suffering chronic, never-ending migraine-like headaches, and dizziness. Puzzled at what this was, Kerr sought future treatment.
It turned out that his back surgery had helped his back, but had also caused a leak in cerebrospinal fluid due to an error during his surgery that broke the membrane that keeps or holds in the fluid surrounding the brain.
The resulting tear in the membrane during the back surgery caused the fluid to leak out.
This does happen; it is estimated that about 1 in every 20 back surgeries in that area of the body can nick or damage the membrane and lead to a leak.
Followup Treatments
To fix the problem, Kerr needed a second surgery. That didn’t fix the problem. A third surgery was needed. Kerr was forced to miss extended time coaching the team, and during this time was debilitated.
Certainly, some people have back surgery, and they recover in better shape than they were before. But not all do; for many, the surgery and complications from it can be long term and life altering.
And if these complications can keep a lifelong professional athlete and coach from doing his job, imagine what can happen to the average person. This is why in injury cases, back surgery can be so serious.
Don’t Settle Quickly
Kerr is seemingly fine today, coaching again, but his story is a lesson in quick settlement. Had Kerr, hypothetically, been in an accident and suffered his back injury, and settled quickly, he may not have known how long and difficult his recovery would be.
Back injuries and treatment can be unpredictable. Victims should always wait to see how they recover–especially when surgery is involved–before simply taking a quick settlement offer from the Defendant or insurance company.
Have you injured your back in any kind of accident? Call the West Palm Beach personal injury attorneys at Pike & Lustig today.
Sources:
bleacherreport.com/articles/2708199-steve-kerr-underwent-spinal-cord-leak-procedure-for-back-injury#:~:text=Steve%20Kerr%20Underwent%20Spinal%20Cord%20Leak%20Procedure%20for%20Back%20Injury,-Timothy%20Rapp%20Invalid&text=Golden%20State%20Warriors%20owner%20Joe,Associated%20Press%20(via%20ESPN).
goldenstateortho.com/dr-lee-talks-to-news-7-about-steve-kerr-s-back-s2/
