Summary Of Spinal Cord Injury: A Case Study

C: Pt will increase ROM and strength in her hips, knees, and ankles to aid in functional mobility. The pt currently has deficits in these areas due to hypertonicity, this impedes on her ability to walk effectively and safely with her crutches. Increasing ROM and breaking up the tone will aid in better functional mobility. If improved over time, this could translate into a long term goal of the pt not needing crutches for mobility.

(THIS WAS AN INFORMATIVE SPEECH I DID FOR MY COM220 CLASS ON THE STAGES OF SPINAL CORD INJURY RESEARCH. IT ACTED AS AN INTRODUCTION TO MY PERSUASIVE SPEECH ON THE BENEFITS OF STEM CELL RESEARCH)

King will be talking about how dangerous football is. There will be knee cartilagae tears. I will also be talking about spine injuries. The final thing is death. Thatnis all.

The central nervous system is what connects the brain to the muscles of the body. When a patient has an injury to the spinal cord, movements in certain parts of the body will be affected based on the location of the injury. If the injury affects hand motion then many day to day tasks are affected. This literature review seeks to understand how an injury to the spinal cord impacts movement, and what has been done so far to help those affected by spinal cord injuries.

Patients will report to physical therapists with a multitude of impairments throughout the progression of the disease. The most prominent impairments will present during cerebellar testing. Patients will show signs of dysmetria, dysphasia, dysdiadochokinesia, and ataxia primarily as a result of the atrophy and damage to the cerebellum. Instability and lack of postural control will be demonstrated during the Romberg's test. Additionally, cranial nerve testing will have positive results for many cranial nerve palsies such as CN III, V, VII, IX, and XII. Patients show weakness in their trunk and extremities during the manual muscle testing. Vestibular testing will result in abnormal VOR, saccades, smooth pursuits and nystagmus. As a result of these impairments, patients experience functional limitations. Primarily, these patients are considered to be “high fall risks,” which ultimately decreases their independence due to weakness, instability and decreased postural control. These patients will feel uncomfortable in many situations and be unable to function independently in the community. This creates an increased risk for further injury. Due to the dysmetria and weakness, patients will also experience difficulty with their daily living skills, such as maintaining proper hygiene; They will have trouble bathing themselves and brushing their teeth without assistive equipment. PT interventions can help minimize and control these limitations. The implementation of balance training and assistive devices will be imperative interventions for an individual to modify and adapt to their gait

A paralysis research guide and updated clinical trials are available. The website offers scholarly articles which contain information on observations and experimentations related to spinal cord injuries. One article that showed how research can benefit patients is Four Paraplegic Men Voluntarily Move Their Legs by Claudia Angeli, Ph.D., senior researcher at Human Locomotor Research Center at Frazier Rehab Institute. The article discussed how four individuals with spinal cord injuries, were implanted with epidural stimulators. The participants were monitored over a three year period. Results were achieved through continual direct epidural electrical stimulation of the participants' lower spinal cord, mimicking signals the brain normally transmits to initiate movement (Angeli, 2014, para. 5). All the participants were able to stand independently, had an increase in muscle mass and regulation of blood pressure at the end of the research period. Empirical evidence was used by observation and inference. The data was recorded and analyzed, leading to a significant breakthrough in the treatment of paralysis and spinal cord injuries. The second article that showed empirical evidence was The Real Brain Drain: Unmet Neuro Therapies by Martin Schwab, Ph. D. The article discussed drug companies and their reluctance to pursue drugs for neurological disorders. Drug companies have

The background of Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) is traced back to the late 1940s/early 1950s with Herman Kabat (MD), Margaret Knott (PT), and Dorothy Voss (PT) being the developers of this method. PNF was developed to treat neurological dysfunctions (such as multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy) . “This was an attempt to gain better control in a population of neurologically impaired instead of just offering the standard treatment at the time which was range of motion exercising and gate belt training”(Knott and Voss, 1968). Even though PNF was developed for neurological dysfunctions overtime it also became principle used in others areas of life such as with athletes and personal/physical trainers. The common misconception with

In the United States, there are approximately 17,000 new cases of spinal cord injuries every year and it is estimated that as of the year 2016 approximately 282,000 people in the United States have an injury to the spinal cord to some degree (NSCISC 2016). The diagnosis of a spinal cord injury includes any damage to the spinal cord, including the nerves associated with it. This kind of injury causes permanent damage to the body by a decrease in strength, sensation, and body functions (Shroff et al. 2017). Spinal cord injuries are particularly hard to treat because each injury is different and the cells associated with the spinal cord are hard to target and treat. In most cases, no improvement functionally is made and the symptoms are permanent.

Having a spinal cord injury can be a very life changing event in many ways. It can affect the ability to function in different daily activities. Spinal cord injury mostly affects people during their early adult 19 years old and an average age at the time of injury of 38 (National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center 2006). Since a spinal cord injury affects all systems of the human body, a lot of people who end up with a spinal injury have serious inquires about how their injuries will affect their performance in a sexual relationship. The way you feel about sex and the ability to have sex is important and is different for everyone. Having injury to the spinal cord will have some effect on sexual functions in the body. The level of which sexual

However, secondary avoidable complications include: pulmonary infections, autonomic dysreflexia, UTI, pressure ulcers, and bowel impactions (Vandenakker-Albanese, 2014). Prognosis for Brown Sequard patients is good. Typically, 1/2-2/3 of the first year motor recovery occurs within the first 1-2 months post injury. After this, recovery typically slows but continues for 3-6 months up to 2 years post injury. In addition, patients are expected to see recovery of voluntary motor strength and a functional gait within 1-6 months. As a patient begins to improve it is recommended they receive ongoing physical and occupational therapy. After they achieve a level of optimal function, follow up with these professions is recommended every 1-3 years (Vandenakker-Albanese,

They are client- directed which means taking their direction from, and responding to the unique needs of the people they serve. In addition, they are culturally aware serving Alberta’s diverse population in all regions of the province. Leaders in spinal cord injury they are demonstrating excellence and impact by achieving positive outcomes for individuals and communities. They are also a dynamic organization integrating best practices in charitable and business governance models. They are also having a solid reputation among their organization with all staff and volunteers and good relationships with other community leaders and decision-makers.

In more detail of his injury, Reeve was paralyzed from the neck down due to a horse riding incident. He was riding in Virginia and was thrown off the horse, the impact of the landing caused him to fracture his top two vertebrates, one of the most severe of cervical injuries, which meant that his skull and spine were not connected, causing him to lose use of all four limbs and his torso. Because of this, he suffered an injury called quadriplegia. Quadriplegia results in all four limbs being paralyzed, since the brain and spinal cord form the central nervous system, when both two parts are disconnected, the brain will have no control over body movement meaning, all function will be lost. Although a spinal cord injury is primary the cause of quadriplegia,

Spinal cord injuries result from a fracture or dislocation of the vertebrae that is typically due to a sudden, forceful blow to the spine (“NINDS Spinal Cord Injury Information Page”, 2016). According to Early (2006), A traumatic accident, such as a shooting, stabbing, car accident, or diving accident, may result in a spinal cord injury (p. 535). According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (2016), Damage to the spinal tissue results from displaced or shards of vertebral bone fragments, damaged ligaments, or discs that bruise or tear the delicate tissue and destroy axons. Destruction of axons result in the inability to carry signals from the brain and spinal cord to the rest of the body (“NINDS Spinal Cord Injury

Spinal cord injuries are characterized by two distinct injury phases. The primary injury phase is represented by all the tissue directly damaged at the time of injury. The damage seen in this phase is primarily shearing of cells, destruction of local vasculature, and severe disruption of spinal cord function. The secondary injury phase is characterized by inflammation of the injury site, immune-mediated tissue destruction, and edema formation at the lesion site. The nature of spinal cord injuries makes the damage done by the primary injury irreversible. The majority of therapeutic research is done with the intention of lessening the damage done during the secondary injury phase. One major complication faced by researchers trying to control the secondary injury phase is the localized destruction of vasculature. Without a constant supply of oxygen and nutrients, many of the cells in the spinal cord will begin to die rapidly, oftentimes releasing biological signals that encourage other cells to die as well. The uncontrolled movement of fluid into the lesion site causes the tissue to swell, further complicating the processes of rebuilding vasculature. The movement of immune

For example, in patients with spinal cord injury (SCI), the injury can be so devastating that it denies the elemental nature of pain sensation. Despite this, the absence of a feeling is a feeling (Wittgeinstein, 1980) and individuals with SCI do not lack the vocabulary to express the pain that they cannot always feel. When it is just felt in the insentient and unmoving part, pain can be described as something that promotes a positive consequence due to a feeling of connectedness with one’s body. In the words of one person with SCI “the pain, is the [body] connection—my friend the pain” (Cole, 2004). The reverse is also true; sometimes these patients live with the opposite extreme experience, with intense, unpleasant bodily pain for which no drug is effective. This pain cannot be ignored and becomes a malevolent part of a person’s identity, especially if it is continuous. “Pain does not came on, it is there, the whole time, twenty-four hours for days, every day of the year. Much of the time I can override it, but I still know it is there”(Cole, 2004). It is possible that this distinction, which incorporates the extreme and contrasting poles of human pain-body experience, is mirrored in the lexicon, despite not being reported in standard descriptors of pain.