Michel Barnier underwent surgery last weekend for a “cervical injury,” he learned this Monday, October 28, in a statement distributed by Matignon. The results of the analysis “will be known within a few weeks,” the Prime Minister’s services further specify, before adding that “everything has gone very well.”
If no other information has yet been leaked, we know that the 73-year-old head of Government will resume his public activities in the Council of Ministers this Thursday, October 31.
“The Prime Minister will resume his activity quite quickly, so we are not in a major operation but probably benign,” analyzed general practitioner Jérôme Marty on our set. “Without medical records it is difficult to know what type of cervical injury it is,” he added, however.
A sharp pain in the neck.
A cervical injury is a subcategory of so-called neck pain, a sharp pain “present in the back of the neck”, explains the official Health Insurance website.
“It begins at the level of one of the elements that make up the neck: muscles (torticollis), tendons, ligaments, nerves… and remains located in the neck region, the organization continues.”
“Neck pain is common because the cervical region is constantly requested in its function of supporting the head and must guarantee a multitude of movements in relation to the trunk, even if only to look towards the visual target,” he emphasizes.
“Common” neck pain due to trauma
There are several types of neck pain. The so-called “common” ones, which “occur outside of trauma and in the absence of an illness that could be the cause of the pain,” highlights the Health Insurance. The cause is professional or sports activities, poor posture, osteoarthritis and anxiety. Among these common neck pains we distinguish postural neck pain in young adults, neck pain in older people and torticollis.
Then there are cervical injuries or sprains, therefore due to trauma, more commonly called “whiplash” or “whiplash.” They are caused “by a sudden and rapid flexion of the neck, immediately followed by extension with stretching,” particularly due to a rear impact in a vehicle or during submersion.
Finally, Health Insurance distinguishes between symptomatic neck pain, that is, when the pain comes from a local or general illness. Before pointing out that these are “more rare cases related to an inflammatory, infectious disease or tumor.”
Headaches, dizziness, muscle contractures…
Among the symptoms that may indicate neck pain, in addition to pain in the neck, the Health Insurance indicates that you may experience headaches, dizziness, contractures of the neck muscles and an increase in neck muscle mass. In the case of a cervical injury resulting from trauma, vision problems, hearing problems, sleep disturbances, concentration problems and memory problems may occur.
If neck pain is common and lasts less than 4 to 6 weeks, your body considers your doctor’s examination “sufficient.” Beyond this period, “radiological examinations may be necessary.” When the cause of pain is trauma, cervical imaging is “necessary from the first moment,” but especially when the shock was violent, the person has neurological disorders, is over 65 years old, or has a chronic spinal disease.
As treatments, medications are prescribed to relieve pain, a cervical collar can “be useful” in cases of “very intense” pain and sometimes physiotherapy sessions may also be necessary.
Source: BFM TV
