When should someone with a spinal cord injury replace their wheelchair? - Laura Wehrli, PT

Well ideally, someone should keep a wheelchair as long as it currently fits them, and functions well for them and is the most efficient chair for them to be using in the environments they are trying to access, as well as efficient for them given any complications they may have—like shoulder pain or other issues—that would affect how they use that wheelchair. Unfortunately, our funders these days do affect how long we need someone to keep a chair. They will often look at the repairs that are required or changes required for the wheelchair, and decide whether the changes that are needed are more expensive or less expensive than the cost of a new chair. And so, it might be determined by the insurance company as to whether someone should get a new chair or not. Generally a chair should last someone five to seven years.