Spinal Cord Injury and Pain
Spinal Cord Injury and Pain
The spinal cord is the major bundle of nerves carrying nerve impulses to and from the brain to the rest of the body. Rings of bone, called vertebrae, surround the spinal cord. These bones constitute the spinal column or back bones.
Spinal cord injury can be direct trauma to the spinal cord itself or indirect damage to the bones, soft tissues, and blood vessels surrounding the spinal cord.
Chronic Pain: Why You Shouldn't Ignore It
Remember your gruff high school coach's advice for treating an injury? "Just walk it off."Turns out your coach should have been sidelined for making a bad call, because while this strategy might have worked for the odd skinned knee, it's downright dangerous for serious pain. Still, a staggering one in 10 Americans reports that he or she has had regular pain for more than a year. Pain is the No. 1 cause of disability in the United States. So why can't we find relief?Experts say that some people...
Read the Chronic Pain: Why You Shouldn't Ignore It article > >
Spinal cord damage results in a loss of function, such as mobility or feeling. In most people who have spinal cord injury, the spinal cord is not fully severed but is bruised or torn. Spinal cord injury is not the same as back injury, which may result from pinched nerves or ruptured disks. Even when a person sustains a break in a vertebra or vertebrae, there may not be any spinal cord injury if the spinal cord itself is not affected.
Spinal cord injuries may result from falls, diseases like polio or spina bifida (a disorder involving incomplete development of the brain, spinal cord, and/or their protective coverings), motor vehicle accidents, sports injuries, industrial accidents, gunshots and physical assaults, among other causes. If the spine is weak because of another condition, such as arthritis, minor injuries can cause spinal cord trauma.
There are two kinds of spinal cord injury -- complete and incomplete. In a complete injury, a person loses all ability to feel and voluntarily move below the level of the injury. In an incomplete injury, there is some functioning below the level of the injury.
Spinal cord injury can be direct trauma to the spinal cord itself or indirect damage to the bones, soft tissues, and blood vessels surrounding the spinal cord.
Recommended Related to Pain Management
Chronic Pain: Why You Shouldn't Ignore It
Remember your gruff high school coach's advice for treating an injury? "Just walk it off."Turns out your coach should have been sidelined for making a bad call, because while this strategy might have worked for the odd skinned knee, it's downright dangerous for serious pain. Still, a staggering one in 10 Americans reports that he or she has had regular pain for more than a year. Pain is the No. 1 cause of disability in the United States. So why can't we find relief?Experts say that some people...
Read the Chronic Pain: Why You Shouldn't Ignore It article > >
Spinal cord damage results in a loss of function, such as mobility or feeling. In most people who have spinal cord injury, the spinal cord is not fully severed but is bruised or torn. Spinal cord injury is not the same as back injury, which may result from pinched nerves or ruptured disks. Even when a person sustains a break in a vertebra or vertebrae, there may not be any spinal cord injury if the spinal cord itself is not affected.
Causes of Spinal Cord Injury
Spinal cord injuries may result from falls, diseases like polio or spina bifida (a disorder involving incomplete development of the brain, spinal cord, and/or their protective coverings), motor vehicle accidents, sports injuries, industrial accidents, gunshots and physical assaults, among other causes. If the spine is weak because of another condition, such as arthritis, minor injuries can cause spinal cord trauma.
Types of Spinal Cord Injury
There are two kinds of spinal cord injury -- complete and incomplete. In a complete injury, a person loses all ability to feel and voluntarily move below the level of the injury. In an incomplete injury, there is some functioning below the level of the injury.
Source...