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NINDS Spinal Cord Injury Information Page

Condensed from Spinal Cord Injury: Hope Through Research

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What is Spinal Cord Injury?

A spinal cord injury usually begins with a sudden, traumatic blow to the spine that fractures or dislocates vertebrae. The damage begins at the moment of injury when displaced bone fragments, disc material, or ligaments bruise or tear into spinal cord tissue. Most injuries to the spinal cord don't completely sever it. Instead, an injury is more likely to cause fractures and compression of the vertebrae, which then crush and destroy axons -- extensions of nerve cells that carry signals up and down the spinal cord between the brain and the rest of the body. An injury to the spinal cord can damage a few, many, or almost all of these axons. Some injuries will allow almost complete recovery. Others will result in complete paralysis.

Is there any treatment?

Improved emergency care for people with spinal cord injuries and aggressive treatment and rehabilitation can minimize damage to the nervous system and even restore limited abilities.  Respiratory complications are often an indication of the severity of spinal cord injury   About one-third of those with injury to the neck area will need help with breathing and require respiratory support. The steroid drug methylprednisolone appears to reduce the damage to nerve cells if it is given within the first 8 hours after injury.  Rehabilitation programs combine physical therapies with skill-building activities and counseling to provide social and emotional support. Electrical simulation of nerves by neural prosthetic devices may restore specific functions, including bladder, breathing, cough, and arm or leg movements, though eligibility for use fo these devices depends on the level and type of the spinal cord injury.

What is the prognosis?

Spinal cord injuries are classified as either complete or incomplete.  An incomplete injury means that the ability of the spinal cord to convey messages to or from the brain is not completely lost. People with incomplete injuries retain some motor or sensory function below the injury.  A complete injury is indicated by a total lack of sensory and motor function below the level of injury.  People who survive a spinal cord injury will most likely have medical complications such as chronic pain and bladder and bowel dysfunction, along with an increased susceptibility to respiratory and heart problems. Successful recovery depends upon how well these chronic conditions are handled day to day.

Surgery to relieve compression of the spinal tissue by surrounding bones broken or dislocated by the injury is often necessary, through timing of such surgery may vary widely.  A recent prospective multicenter trial called STASCIS is exploring whether performing decompression surgery early (less than 24 hours following injury) can improve outcomes for patients with bone fragments or other tissues pressing on the spinal cord.

What research is being done?

The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) conducts spinal cord research in its laboratories at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and also supports additional research through grants to major research institutions across the country.  Advances in research are giving doctors and patients hope that repairing injured spinal cords is a reachable goal.  Advances in basic research are also being matched by progress in clinical research, especially in understanding the kinds of physical rehabilitation that work best to restore function. Some of the more promising rehabilitation techniques are helping spinal cord injury patients become more mobile.

NIH Patient Recruitment for Spinal Cord Injury Clinical Trials

Organizations

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Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation
636 Morris Turnpike
Suite 3A
Short Hills, NJ   07078
informations@christopherreeve.org
http://www.christopherreeve.org
Tel: 973-379-2690 800-225-0292
Fax: 973-912-9433

National Rehabilitation Information Center (NARIC)
8201 Corporate Drive
Suite 600
Landover, MD   20785
naricinfo@heitechservices.com
http://www.naric.com
Tel: 301-459-5900/301-459-5984 (TTY) 800-346-2742
Fax: 301-562-2401

Miami Project to Cure Paralysis/ Buoniconti Fund
P.O. Box 016960
R-48
Miami, FL   33101-6960
miamiproject@med.miami.edu
http://www.themiamiproject.org
Tel: 305-243-6001 800-STANDUP (782-6387)
Fax: 305-243-6017

National Spinal Cord Injury Association
75-20 Astoria Blvd
Suite 120
East Elmhurst, NY   11370-1177
info@spinalcord.org
http://www.spinalcord.org
Tel: 800-962-9629
Fax: 866-387-2196

Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA)
801 18th Street, NW
Washington, DC   20006-3517
info@pva.org
http://www.pva.org
Tel: 202-USA-1300 (872-1300) 800-555-9140
Fax: 202-785-4452

Spinal Cord Society
19051 County Highway 1
Fergus Falls, MN   56537
scs-nc@nc.rr.com
http://scsus.org/
Tel: 218-739-5252 or 218-739-5261
Fax: 218-739-5262

Clearinghouse on Disability Information
Special Education & Rehabilitative Services Communications & Customer Service Team
550 12th Street, SW, Rm. 5133
Washington, DC   20202-2550
http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers
Tel: 202-245-7307 202-205-5637 (TTD)
Fax: 292024507636

National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR)
U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
400 Maryland Ave., S.W.
Washington, DC   20202-7100
http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/nidrr
Tel: 202-245-7460 202-245-7316 (TTY)

Related NINDS Publications and Information
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Prepared by:
Office of Communications and Public Liaison
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
National Institutes of Health
Bethesda, MD 20892



NINDS health-related material is provided for information purposes only and does not necessarily represent endorsement by or an official position of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke or any other Federal agency. Advice on the treatment or care of an individual patient should be obtained through consultation with a physician who has examined that patient or is familiar with that patient's medical history.

All NINDS-prepared information is in the public domain and may be freely copied. Credit to the NINDS or the NIH is appreciated.

Last updated September 18, 2012