Broken Tailbone Symptoms After a Motor Vehicle Accident

Key Highlights

• Typical broken tailbone symptoms after a car accident in Florida are pain at the end of the spine, very painful when sitting down, swelling, a deep bruise and painful bowel movements. Symptom severity typically gets worse over the 1-2 days following any Florida car accident. 
• A broken tailbone and bruised tailbone are completely different. A broken tailbone is an injury to the bone while a bruised tailbone is the result of injury to the soft tissue around the bone. 
• It is possible to walk around with a broken tailbone, but once you attempt to sit you will experience extreme pain. 
• Recovery from a broken tailbone may take up to 12 weeks or longer depending on the severity of your injury. 
• In Florida you must seek medical treatment within 14 days from the date of your injury in order to qualify for PIP benefits.

Why Does My Tailbone Hurt After a Florida Car Accident?

An injury to the coccyx (the small bone at the bottom of your spine), known as a broken tailbone, usually happens when an object hits it directly, most often in a car accident. Broken tailbones can cause intense pain in your back/bottom, and they’ll hurt even more if you sit. There can also be swelling and pain when having a bowel movement. 

I’m Alex J. Kompothecras, and I represent people injured in car accidents in all of Florida who have tailbone pain from their accidents. Most people are surprised to learn that the insurance company often underestimates a broken tailbone and considers it to be no worse than a bruise. It’s natural for you to have been upset, confused, and in pain.

At our firm, Alpha Law Group, our lawyers’ primary objective will be the examination of your current tailbone condition and the provision of relevant documentation concerning any medical conditions associated with the tailbone.

What Are the Most Common Broken Tailbone Symptoms?

Many symptoms associated with a fracture of the tailbone manifest themselves in a broad spectrum of severity from relatively mild discomfort to extreme and/or continuous discomfort that inhibits daily functioning. The initial step towards understanding whether an established tailbone injury is a fracture or merely bruising will be determining how it feels.

What does a broken tailbone feel like?

• Sharp, piercing pain at the base of their spine
• Severe discomfort when sitting on flat surfaces
• Discomfort accompanying their movement when transitioning from seated to standing
• Tenderness to touch around the injury site
• Visible signs of swelling surrounding and within proximity of the base of their tailbone
• Deep internal pressure around and/or near the site of their injury

Primary signs of a broken tailbone

Many of the classic signs of a fracture of a tailbone can be classified as follows:

• You continue to experience pain in the area of your tailbone months following an auto accident
• You have a visible bruise(s) surrounding and/or to the area of your tailbone
• You have visible swelling around the area of your tailbone
• You are experiencing pain during bowel movements
• You are experiencing pain during sexual intercourse (this occurs more often among female tailbone fractures than male)
• The symptoms you experience in the area of your tailbone are worsening in nature, but not improving.

These are some of the classic symptoms associated with fractures of the tailbone and should be assessed without reservations because they denote that a fracture may have occurred.

Broken vs Bruised Tailbone: What’s the Difference?

The most frequently asked questions we receive:

How do I know if I broke my tailbone or just bruised it?

Here is a breakdown of these symptoms through comparison.

Bruised Tailbone Symptoms

Symptoms associated with a bruised tailbone:

• Tenderness to touch
• Slight swelling
• Change in colour of the bruised area
• Improving over the course of weeks.

Tailbone Fracture Symptoms

• Constant, deep pain
• Inability to sit for a prolonged period
• Pain lasting more than 6 weeks
• A “falling through the floor” feeling when sitting/standing

Imaging tests (x-ray, MRI smacking etc) are likely to be performed if you have symptoms lasting more than 1 month, but still have not had a tailbone fracture once and x-ray taken.

How to Tell If Your Tailbone Is Broken?

Many people find it difficult to understand whether or not they have a bruise or if something worse than that exists because tailbone injuries are usually not obvious. If you can identify the warning signs early on, you can prevent further pain and complications. 

How do you know if your tailbone is broken?

Look for these warning signs:

• Pain that lasts more than 4–6 weeks
• Swelling that is growing bigger
• Pain when you have a bowel movement
• Severe discomfort while sitting
• X-Ray confirmation of the injury

Can you walk with a broken tailbone?

Although the majority of people who have a broken tailbone are able to walk. Many people feel more comfortable walking than sitting; as a result, they do not go to seek medical help for the injury.

What happens if you break your tailbone?

The tailbone will break, crack or fracture.

• The surrounding muscles will tighten and spasm.
• The muscles will become inflamed and there will be more swelling.
• The nerve endings in and around the tailbone will get irritated.

In the most extreme cases, this may lead to chronic coccydynia (long-term tailbone pain).

Signs of a Broken Tailbone in a Child

The way children may show symptoms of a broken tailbone will differ from how adults will show symptoms. 

Signs of a broken tailbone in child cases include:

They are refusing to sit down.

• They are crying when sitting down.
• They are not going to the bathroom very often.

You’re likely to see some type of change in a child’s behaviour if he or she has a broken tailbone. Most of the time a child has difficulty explaining how they are hurting so their behaviour is the best indicator that they probably have an injury.

Female Broken Tailbone Injuries: Why They’re Often Worse?

Women are more prone to injuries of the coccyx due to differences in the structure of a female’s pelvis. Some examples of broken tailbones among women may include:

• Increased pelvic pain
• Painful intercourse
• Painful periods
• History of childbirth leading to greater mobility of the coccyx

Many times, we have dealt with women in Florida who had delays in diagnosis due to being told initially that their symptoms were muscular.

What Does a Broken Tailbone Look Like?

On imaging:

• An X-ray may reveal a fracture line
• An MRI shows swelling and soft tissue damage
• A CT scan can identify displaced fracture

When assessing for a broken condition of the tailbone, initial x-ray findings may not provide the full picture, therefore persistent symptoms are more pertinent than initial imaging results.

How Long Does a Broken Tailbone Take to Heal?

Broken tailbone recovery time depends on:

• Age
• Level of activity
• Degree of severity
• Timeliness of medical attention
• Displacement of your tailbone

Commonly asked questions the patients will have include:

How long does it take a broken tailbone to heal?

Although many fractures take about 3 months to begin healing, some patients will experience long-term chronic pain.

What to Do for a Broken Tailbone?

Here’s what you need to do:

Immediate steps

• Donut Cushion
• Ice to the region for 15-20 minutes
• Limit sitting 
• Take prescribed NSAIDs as directed.

Treatment for broken tailbone injuries

Recommendations by the medical provider may include:

• Physical therapy
• Pelvic floor therapy
• Corticosteroid injection
• Nerve block
• Broken tailbone surgery.

Broken tailbone surgery

Surgical treatment (coccygectomy) is unusual but required when the following occurs:

• Patients with greater than 6 months of pain
• Fails to improve with conservative measures
• There is a severe displacement of the broken tailbone.

According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the majority of tailbone injuries respond to conservative measures and do not require surgical treatment.

Long-Term Complications of a Tailbone Injury

Ignoring the symptoms of a broken tailbone injury can result in:

• Chronic coccyx pain (coccydynia)
• Pelvic floor dysfunction
• Irritated sciatic nerve
• Postural issues
• Emotional trauma

We have seen many clients who have suffered for years because their doctor downplayed their injury as just a simple bruised tailbone. 

Can You Get Compensation for a Broken Tailbone in Florida?

Yes, but it’s not clear.

Florida is a no-fault state meaning that if your car is involved in an accident, your PIP will pay the medical bills related to the accident. You can file a claim for medical expenses through the PIP of your own vehicle’s insurance carrier provided you were covered by that insurance.

If the injury is determined to be permanent as defined by Florida Statute §627.737, you may pursue an additional claim based on the following:

• Pain and suffering
• Future medical bills
• Loss of earning capacity

If the tailbone injury is severe and permanently affects one, then file an additional claim. 

Case Study: Recovering Compensation for a Broken Tailbone Injury in Florida

By Alex J. Kompothecras, Alpha Law Group

In one case, a Florida client suffered a fractured tailbone related to an auto accident when a vehicle rear-ended him as he stopped at a traffic signal. Initially, the insurance company classified him as having sustained a bruised tailbone and offered him very limited compensation, yet at that point in time the client felt significant pain in his tailbone (and from trauma associated with the auto accident) and was unable to sit comfortably in his office for work, along with experiencing ongoing symptoms of complications associated with a break in the tailbone. Medical expenses were incurred by the client while the insurance company questioned whether the claimant’s injury met the requirements for a permanent injury. 

At Alpha Law Group, we did an extensive evaluation of the situation. We looked carefully at the crash reports, gathered evidence from radiology images of a broken tailbone, consulted with ortho doctors on how long it typically takes for a broken tailbone to heal, and documented how the broken tailbone has impacted our client’s daily life and work. We constructed an entire case that was ready to go to trial which included providing a clear explanation about the difference between bruised tailbone vs broken tailbone, and provided evidence of how the broken tailbone would affect our client in the future. 

Result

Alpha Law Group was able to get compensation for all of the medical bills caused by the broken tailbone, for all future medical treatment, for lost wages due to inability to work due to injury from car accident, and for pain and suffering caused by broken tailbone. The settlement we obtained for our client substantially exceeded the insurer’s initial offer, providing financial relief while assisting our client with the recovery process.

Speak With a Florida Broken Tailbone Injury Lawyer Today

If you are suffering from broken tailbone injuries due to a car accident, you may have the right to collect compensation from the at-fault driver under Florida law. A broken tailbone is very different than a bruised tailbone, and no insurance company should treat them as such. 

The Florida auto accident lawyers at Alpha Law Group can help protect your rights, fully document your injuries, and ensure you receive the maximum compensation possible for your injuries. Call (941)-304-1500 today and schedule a free consultation.

Frequently Asked Questions About Broken Tailbone Symptoms

Can a broken tailbone get worse over time?

A fracture that goes untreated can result in chronic inflammation/long-term pain from a broken tailbone. Diagnosis could take too long, interlining to increase pain and the amount of time it takes to heal.

Is tailbone pain after a car accident always serious?

Not in all cases, however, if there are symptoms continuing to be present for greater than several weeks, it may be an indication of an actual fracture instead of a bruise. Therefore, if the symptoms increase there is a likelihood that a medical professional should also evaluate an individual.

Can a broken tailbone cause permanent damage?

With a fracture that is displaced there may be long standing pain and dysfunction of the pelvic floor. As a result, diagnosis and recordation of the injury is important for both recovery medically and to be able to claim any legal cause of action.

Will insurance cover a broken tailbone injury in Florida?

Through PIP, the insurance pays 80% of the medical bills associated with seeking treatment as long as such treatment occurs within 14 days. Furthermore, if your injury is deemed permanent under Florida law, you may be entitled to additional compensation for PIP.

When should I contact a lawyer for a broken tailbone injury?

If you have a severe amount of pain from your tailbone, the pain lasts longer than a few weeks or it prevents you from being able to work, you should consult an attorney sooner rather than later.