Complications from spinal cord injury (SCI) are severe and last throughout the lifetime, significantly reducing quality of life. They affect all body systems, including breathing, circulation, bowel and bladder function. SCI also results in pain and causes a condition called autonomic dysreflexia, which is a problem with the autonomic (involuntary) nervous system that leads to debilitating muscle spasms.
Breathing
The muscles and nerves which control breathing can be damaged by cervical neck injuries. For example, the phrenic nerve controls the diaphragm, which is a layer of muscle that separates the lungs and heart of the chest from the abdominal cavity. The diaphragm moves up and down helping the lungs fill with air. If the phrenic nerve is damaged, a ventilator will be needed in order to breathe. Cervical nerve injuries also affect one’s ability to clear the throat and cough. This leads to respiratory complications such as pneumonia or aspiration.
Circulation
If the injury has damaged the spinal cord nerves which communicate with the heart, irregular heart rhythms may develop. The body has a harder time managing blood pressure, and since the muscles are not moving and helping blood return to the heart, there is a higher risk of blood pooling and clots. Pressure points on the body can also lead to specific areas of reduced circulation with subsequent skin breakdown and infection.
Bowel and Bladder Dysfunction
Damage to nerves that control the bladder and bowels can cause difficulty emptying the bladder or having a bowel movement. It may be necessary to self-catheterize throughout the lifetime since normal urination is no longer possible.
Chronic Pain
After a spinal cord injury, certain areas of the body may become extremely sensitive. Something as simple as a shirt cuff putting pressure on the wrist can cause severe stinging and burning pain that radiates up the arm. Pain also develops in the muscles that remain functional, as they compensate for other areas that no longer work.
Autonomic Dysreflexia
A spinal cord injury affects the body’s unconscious, or autonomic, nervous system. This part of the body’s nervous system controls the heart, digestion, the bladder and blood pressure. Pressure on different parts of the body can confuse the nervous system and cause alterations to the body’s natural homeostatic balance. These spinal cord injury symptoms can be difficult to manage.
Long Term Needs
Only a few possible complications from spinal cord injury are discussed here. Personalized long term care will be needed for severe injuries throughout the lifetime. Dr. Greg Vigna, a rehabilitation physician and a lawyer, advocates for you to receive the best possible spinal cord injury care, and also addresses complications from associated injuries such as head trauma and broken bones. He is experienced in working with victims of motorcycle, car, and truck accidents, work accidents and assaults. He also advocates for adult and child pedestrians and bicyclists struck in the community.
