Spinal
Cord Injury : Quadriplegic and Paraplegic Injuries For a person who has been paralysed due to
a spinal
cord injury, paraplegic and quadriplegic (tetraplegic) are terms used to describe the resultant medical condition. The classification of spinal cord injury depends on the spinal cord injury level and severity of a persons paralysis, and how it affects their limbs.
Aims of This Website
This website provides peer
support for those affected by spinal cord injuries. When someone suffers a spinal cord injury, there will be a wide variety of issues to cope with.
The following topics are the most common areas this website addresses:
- Acute spinal cord injury support.
- Chronic spinal cord injury support.
- Incontinence support.
- Rehabilitation.
- Prevention of pressure sores.
- Pain management.
- Mobility issues - wheelchairs, adapted cars, motorbikes.
- Accessible holidays.
- Stem cell research and stem cell therapy.
It has always been the opinion of Apparelyzed, that when you live with paralysis from a spinal cord injury, there are many situations in life which need solving by a different and often unique approach, you really need to think outside "the box", and Think Different!
Paraplegic and Quadriplegic Discussion
Forum
If you have any spinal cord injury
related questions, please visit our discussion
forums and join in on the many topics there. We will
do our best to help you, or at the very least, put you in contact
with someone who can help if we can't. The discussion forum is intended
to be a free flow of information between spinally injured people,
carers, and their friends, and everyone is welcome.
Even if you don't have any questions, take a look at the forum
anyway, as you may be able offer help and advice to others who have
questions.
What is a Spinal
Cord Injury ?
A spinal cord injury
(SCI) is typically defined as damage or trauma to the spinal cord that in
turn results in a loss or impaired function resulting in reduced
mobility or feeling.
Typical common causes of damage to the spinal cord, are trauma
(car/motorcycle accident, gunshot, falls, sports injuries, etc.),
or disease (Transverse Myelitis, Polio, Spina Bifida, Friedreich's
Ataxia, spinal cord tumour, spinal stenosis, etc.). The resulting damage to the spinal cord is known
as a lesion,
and the paralysis is known as quadriplegia
or quadraplegia / tetraplegia if the injury is in the cervical
(neck) region, or as paraplegia
if the injury is in the thoracic,
lumbar
or sacral
region.
The spinal cord injury level is usually referred to alpha numerically, relating to the affected segment in the spinal cord, ie, C4, T5, L5 etc.
Below the conus medullaris (L1-L2), the spinal canal contains a mass of nerves refered to as the cauda equina or "horse-tail". These nerves branch off the lower end of the spinal cord and contain the nerve roots from L1-5 and S1-5. Injury to these nerve roots are refered to as cauda equina syndrome.
It is possible for someone to suffer a broken
neck,or a broken
back without becoming paralysed. This occurs when there
is a fracture or dislocation of the vertebrae, but the spinal cord
has not been damaged.
What is a Complete and Incomplete Spinal
Cord Injury
There are typically two types of lesions
associated with a spinal cord injury, these are known as a complete spinal cord injury
and an incomplete spinal cord injury. A complete type of injury means the person is completely paralysed
below their lesion. Whereas an incomplete injury, means only part
of the spinal cord is damaged. A person with an incomplete injury
may have sensation below their lesion but no movement, or visa versa.
There are many types in incomplete spinal cord injuries, and no
two are the same.
Such injuries are known as Brown
Sequard Syndrome, Central
Cord Syndrome, Anterior
Cord Syndrome and Posterior Cord Syndrome.
What is Spinal Cord Injury
Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation for individuals with a spinal cord injury combines physical therapies with skill-building activities. These activities will usually take place at a specialist centre such as a spinal cord
injury rehabilitation centre
or spinal
injury centre. A rehabilitation team will usually oversee activities and include a doctor specialising in spinal injuries, social workers, physical and occupational therapists, sports educators, rehabilitation nurses, rehabilitation psychologists, vocational counsellors and nutritionists.
Generally, paraplegics will be in hospital for
around 5 months, where as quadriplegics can be
in hospital for around 6 - 8 months, whilst they undergo rehabilitation.
Both paraplegics and quadriplegics should have some kind of rehabilitation
and physiotherapy before they are discharged from hospital, to help
maximise their potential, or help them get used to life in a wheelchair,
and to help teach techniques which make everyday life easier.
Disabled sports, and wheelchair based sports can
be an excellent way to build stamina, and help in rehabilitation
by giving confidence and better social skills. The ultimate reward
for many disabled sportsmen and women, is to win at the
paralympic games, which will be coming to London in 2012.
Spinal Cord Injury Cure and Treatment
A cure for long term paralysis is still some years
in the future, but clinical trials are taking place with olfactory
ensheathing glial (OEG) cells and embryonic stem cell based therapy.
Quadraplegic, Tetraplegic,
Paraplegic and it's Definition
Quadraplegic is derived
from two separate words from two different languages, Latin and
Greek. The word “Quadra”, meaning “four”
which is derived from Latin, relates to the number of limbs. “Plegic”,
is derived from the Greek word “Plegia”, meaning paralysis.
Put the two together, and you have “Quadraplegia”.
“Tetra” is derived from the Greek word
for “Four”. “Para” is derived from the Greek
word for "two" Hence: Tetraplegic and Paraplegic.
In Europe, the term for 4 limb paralysis has always
been tetraplegia. The Europeans would never dream of combining a
Latin and Greek root in one word.
In 1991, when the American Spinal Cord Injury Classification
system was being revised, the definition of names was discussed.
The British are more aware of Greek versus Latin names. Since Plegia
is a Greek word and quadri is Latin, the term quadriplegia mixes
language sources. Upon review of the literature, it was recommended
that the term tetraplegia be used by the American Spinal Cord Association
so that there are not two different words in English referring to
the same thing.
Countries around the word hold spinal cord injury awareness days to promote the work charities do to help those with spinal injuries. The awareness days also provide an opportunity for charities and non profit organisations to reach out to those existing spinal injured individuals, who are not aware of the support services charities can provide.
There's a new area on the forum for the
discussion of both the Winter Paralympic Games and the Summer Paralympic
Games. Feel free to discuss the upcoming London Paralympic Games to be
held in 2012.
Contribute
to the Paralympic Games Forum >>>
National Spinal Injury Organisations
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Your Comments
Top 5 Causes of
Spinal Cord Injuries
Motor Vehicle Crashes: 42.1%
Falls: 26.7%
Violence: 15.1%
Other/Unknown: 8.6%
Sports Injuries: 7.6%
Injuries since 2005 - Source: www.spinalcord.uab.edu
Webmasters
If you run a website which deals with quadriplegia, paraplegia
or spinal cord injuries,
or is targeted at a paraplegic or quadriplegic person, we would be more
than happy for you to link to us, and would be prepared to add a reciprocal
link in kind. You can either make up a link to us, or use the code on
our links page.
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