PARALYSIS RESOURCES
More than 600 of the best Internet resources
on paralysis and spinal cord injury
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Coping with Paralysis
after a Spinal Cord Injury
Coping with Paralysis
after a Spinal Cord Injury
paralysis:
living your life with a spinal cord injury
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FacingDisability.com connects families who suddenly have to deal with paralysis after a spinal cord injury to people like them who have already been there.
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ANIMATED SCI LEVELS CHARTMouse over the spinal column to see how the level of injury affects loss of function and control |
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Cervical InjuriesCervical injuries above the C-4 level may require a ventilator for the person to breathe. C-5 injuries often result in shoulder and biceps control, but no control at the wrist or hand. C-6 injuries generally yield wrist control, but no hand function. Individuals with C-7, C-8 and T-1 injuries can straighten their arms, but still may have problems with their hands. |
ANIMATED SCI LEVELS CHART
Mouse over the spinal column to see how the level of injury affects loss of function and control
Cervical Injuries
Cervical injuries above the C-4 level may require a ventilator for the person to breathe. C-5 injuries often result in shoulder and biceps control, but no control at the wrist or hand. C-6 injuries generally yield wrist control, but no hand function. Individuals with C-7, C-8 and T-1 injuries can straighten their arms, but still may have problems with their hands.
Thoracic Injuries
The first thoracic vertebra, T-1, is located approximately at the same level as the top rib. Injuries to nerves in this region usually affect the chest and the legs, and result in paraplegia. For injuries from T-1 to T-8, there is usually control of the hands but lack of abdominal muscle control. (Individuals with injuries from T-1 to T-6 are also at risk for Autonomic Dysreflexia)
Lumbar Injuries
Injuries to nerves in the area of L-1 to L-5 generally result in some loss of functioning of the hips and legs. Bowel, bladder and sexual function may also be impacted.
Sacral Injuries
The sacrum runs from the pelvis to the end of the spinal column. Injuries to nerves in this area generally result in some loss of functioning of the hips, legs, ankles, and feet. Loss of control of bowel and bladder and sexual functions is also common.
Facing Disability Blog
New Technology Helps Man With SCI Regain Hand Function
A study published last month in Nature Medicine found that a man with complete tetraplegia was able to feed himself, drink from a cup and handle fragile objects after researchers at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research connected implanted brain electrodes to electrical stimulation of his spinal cord and arm muscles. The findings are promising but need to be confirmed in larger studies.
The experimental system, called a double neural bypass, reads signals produced when a person intends to move and uses a computer to send instructions around the injured area of the spinal cord to activate the person's muscles.
Unlike brain-computer systems that control a robotic arm or computer cursor, this system enabled the participant to move his own arm and hand while also restoring some sensation by transmitting information about pressure and touch back to his brain.
Researchers reported that some improvements persisted even when the system was turned off. The participant gained strength in his arms, became more sensitive to touch at his wrist, and reported being able to scratch and wipe his face and feel his dog's fur against an area of his wrist that had previously been numb.
David McGonigle, a lecturer in neurostimulation at Cardiff University in Wales who was not involved in the study, said the participant's ability to perform practical tasks demonstrated the technology's potential.
"That's where the real worth of the study lies, with the participant now able to perform meaningful everyday tasks such as feeding himself," McGonigle told the Financial Times.
The system remains experimental, and larger studies are needed to evaluate its safety, identify who might benefit, and determine whether the improvements are long-lasting.
... READ MORE
Facing Disability BlogNew Technology Helps Man With SCI Regain Hand Function
A study published last month in Nature Medicine found that a man with complete tetraplegia was able to feed himself, drink from a cup and handle fragile objects after researchers at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research connected implanted brain electrodes to electrical stimulation of his spinal cord and arm muscles. The findings are promising but need to be confirmed in larger studies. The experimental system, called a double neural bypass, reads signals produced when a person intends to move and uses a computer to send instructions around the injured area of the spinal cord to activate the person's muscles. Unlike brain-computer systems that control a robotic arm or computer cursor, this system enabled the participant to move his own arm and hand while also restoring some sensation by transmitting information about pressure and touch back to his brain. Researchers reported that some improvements persisted even when the system was turned off. The participant gained strength in his arms, became more sensitive to touch at his wrist, and reported being able to scratch and wipe his face and feel his dog's fur against an area of his wrist that had previously been numb. David McGonigle, a lecturer in neurostimulation at Cardiff University in Wales who was not involved in the study, said the participant's ability to perform practical tasks demonstrated the technology's potential. "That's where the real worth of the study lies, with the participant now able to perform meaningful everyday tasks such as feeding himself," McGonigle told the Financial Times. The system remains experimental, and larger studies are needed to evaluate its safety, identify who might benefit, and determine whether the improvements are long-lasting. Rad More |
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FacingDisability presents current information on spinal cord injury which has been developed by working with medical experts at major hospitals universities and rehabilitation institutions. They include: Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, Chicago; Harvard Spaulding Medical Center, Boston; Shepherd Center, Atlanta; Craig Hospital, Denver; Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN. FacingDisability staff members serve on committees of the Model Systems Knowledge Translation Center (MSKTC) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and The National Institute on Disability and Independent Living (NIDLRR). Spinal cord injury medical experts who are interviewed on FacingDisability.com come from: Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, Chicago; Craig Hospital, Denver; Shepherd Center, Atlanta; Magee Rehabilitation Hospital, Philadelphia; Shriners Hospital for Children, Chicago; TIRR Memorial Hermann, Houston; VA Palo Alto Health Care System, CA; Memphis VA Medical Center, TN; University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital, Washington, D.C.; |
VA Boston Healthcare System; Rehabilitation Institute of Kansas City, Missouri; Case Western University, Cleveland; Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center, Milwaukee; Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia; Arkansas Spinal Cord Injury Commission, Little Rock; VA Puget Sound Health Care System, Seattle; School of Public Health, Indiana University. Personal interviews of people living with spinal cord injury were recorded by FacingDisability in Chicago, Philadelphia, Atlanta, New Orleans, and California. FacingDisability is regularly invited to make presentations at the national meetings of spinal cord injury associations: Academy of Spinal Cord Injury Professionals (ASCIP), American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA), Rehabilitation Psychology Conference, The International Spinal Cord Injury Society (ISCoS), American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (ACRM) and at the Paralyzed Veterans of America Summit (PVA). FacingDisability.com is funded by the Hill Foundation, a 501(c) (3) non-profit. |