Spinal injury victims have a lot of adjusting to do

We're finishing our discussions about various disabilities this month with a review and discussion of spinal cord injuries.They are most commonly referred to as SCIs.

A spinal cord injury usually results from an acute traumatic event to the spinal column. Each year, 12,000 to 15,000 Americans sustain spinal cord injuries. Motor vehicle accidents account for nearly half of them, followed by falls and gunshot injuries. Other causes of SCI include infections, multiple sclerosis or tumors.

Because different parts of the spinal column are responsible for different body functions, the degree of loss of function depends on the level of the spine at which the injury occurs. Typically, as the point of injury to the spinal cord moves upward, the degree and extent of bodily function loss increases.

Spinal cord injuries can be classified as:

A spinal cord injury can also be described as complete or incomplete:

Sometimes the spinal cord is only bruised or swollen after the initial injury. As the swelling goes down, the nerves may begin to work again. The longer there is no improvement, the less likely it is that there will be any improvement. Conversely, if an individual shows some sign of recovery, the likelihood of improvement increases, but there are no guarantees more function will return. Some individuals have involuntary movements, such as twitching or shaking. These movements are called spasms and are not a sign of recovery. A spasm occurs when a wrong message from the nerve causes the muscle to move. The person cannot control this movement.