SCI Health Issues
The Electronic Directory for People with Spinal Cord Injury
"Because no one should cope with a Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) alone"
|
The Electronic Directory for People with Spinal Cord Injury "Because no one should cope with a Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) alone" |
|
|
Health is wealth; the phrase itself has a vast meaning. Health is one of the most important aspects of a SCI person's life. For gaining better health the SCI individual and family has to become more conscious about their health issues. Glossary Of Health Issues In Spinal Cord Injury Abuse and SCI - A Cautionary Tale - An article from New Mobility magazine (March, 1999) that discusses the facts that abuse makes individuals vulnerable but that it is not necessary to be a victim. It encourages telling someone of the situation and getting help.
Adaptive equipment -A wide array of equipment and devices used to accomplish more ADL activities and become more functionally independent.
Aging and SCI - The changes in one's independence brought on by a spinal cord injury that require the need for assistance. It covers issues of self-esteem and accepting help after SCI and how this can change as one ages.
Assisted Cough - A technique in which the patient is assisted by another individual to produce a more forceful and productive cough.
Automatic Dysreflexia - A potentially dangerous complication in SCI above the T-6 vertebra that involves high blood pressure, sweating, chills, and headache, frequently due to an overfull bladder or impacted bowel. Also known as hyperreflexia.
Body Temperature Regulation - Most people with complete spinal cord injuries do not sweat below the level of the injury and many quadriplegics cannot even sweat above the injury (even though they may sweat due to autonomic dysreflexia). With loss of the ability to sweat, the patient becomes poikilothermic and needs careful control of their environmental conditions. Therefore, if a high paraplegic or quadriplegic is in an outside temperature over 90 F, especially when the humidity is high, the body temperature will begin to rise. Likewise in a cold environment, the body may not be able to get the messages through to the brain that the body is cooling down, and if left untreated, the person will soon become hypothermic.
Bowel Program - A habit or pattern for emptying the bowel at a specific time.
Bladder Training - Method by which the bladder is trained to empty (micturition) without the use of an indwelling catheter. Involves drinking measured amounts of fluid, and allowing the bladder to fill and empty at timed intervals.
Catheter - A flexible rubber or plastic tube for withdrawing or introducing fluids into a cavity of the body, usually the bladder.
Condom Catheter - External urine collecting device used by males.
Depression (dysthymia) - An abnormal lowering of mood of psychologic or physiologic origin which is more prolonged than mourning and is time-limited and related to a specific loss.
Exercise - An article by Craig Hospital Research Department from their SCI Health and Wellness series that discusses ways individuals with SCI can use exercise to improve flexibility, increase strength, increase endurance or aerobic conditioning, or improve body shape.
Foley Catheter - A tube inserted into the bladder to drain the urine into a plastic bag either attached to the leg or the bed.
Incomplete Injury - Some sensation or motor control preserved below spinal cord lesion.
Indwelling Catheter - A flexible tube, retained in the bladder, and used for continuous urinary drainage to a leg bag or other device.
Intermittent Catheterization Program (ICP) - Using a catheter to empty the bladder on a regular schedule.
Intrathecal Baclofen - Administration of the anti-spasm drug Baclofen directly to the spinal cord by way of a surgically implanted pump.
Leg Bag - External bag which is strapped to the leg for collection of urine.
Lower Motor Neurons - These nerve fibers originate in the spinal cord and travel out of the central nervous system to muscles in the body. An injury to these nerve cells can destroy reflexes and may also affect bowel, bladder and sexual function.
Occupational Therapist (OT) - The member of the rehabilitation team who helps maximize a person's independence.
Occupational Therapy (OT) - Structured activity focused on activities of daily living skills (feeding, dressing, bathing, grooming), arm flexibility and strengthening, neck control and posture, perceptual and cognitive skills, and using adaptive equipment to facilitate ADL’s.
Osteoporosis and SCI - An inevitable complication of spinal cord injury (SCI) is osteoporosis, characterized by decreased bone mass, deterioration of bone tissue, and increased susceptibility to fracture. The effect of remobilization on SCI-induced osteoporosis has been studied fairly well. Weight-bearing exercises with standing frames and bikes, using forms of functional electrical stimulation (FES), have been shown to be effective when started within 6 weeks of injury. These same programs in the chronic SCI population, however, are ineffective in preventing osteoporosis or restoring bone mineral.
The Right (and Wrong) Way to Treat Pain - HINT: IT TAKES MORE THAN A PRESCRIPTION PAD TO REALLY BRING RELIEF By CLAUDIA WALLIS Feb. 28, 2005 - Chronic pain is a thief. It breaks into your body and robs you blind. With lightning fingers, it can take away your livelihood, your marriage, your friends, your favorite pastimes and big chunks of your personality. Left un-apprehended, it will steal your days and your nights until the world has collapsed into a cramped cell of suffering. Penny Rickhoff's world began to shrink suddenly in 1990, after a very tall and very heavy file cabinet toppled over onto her back. The freak accident damaged her spinal cord, leaving her with a constant, gnawing pressure in her lower back. " If I sit for very long, I'm... Opps! We don't usually post articles that should be free. However if you are searching for pain relief, you may want to pay the $1.99. -ed. Read Here The complete article is 2862 words long.
What is Pain? Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage. In general, people can experience acute and chronic pain. Most people experience acute pain when they have a disease or injury to the body. It usually begins suddenly and acts as a danger signal telling you that something is wrong and that you need help. This acute pain can be severe or mild, but it usually goes away as the body heals. Chronic pain is like acute pain in that it can start suddenly. However, chronic pain differs because it can build up over time and continue long after the body heals. Acute pain is common after a spinal cord injury (SCI). The pain may occur as a result of the damage to the spinal cord, or it may occur from damage to other areas of the body at the time of injury. Pain after Spinal Cord Injury: InfoSheet #10
Paralysis - Is the inability to control the muscles that move the body. There are several levels of severity associated with paralysis, including paraplegia and quadriplegia. The paraplegic has lost the partial or complete ability to move the legs while the quadriplegic is partially or completely unable to move both the legs and arms. Spinal cord injury are major causes of paralysis. The extent of the paralysis depends on the severity of the location of the spinal cord injury. Paralysis can be permanent or temporary. Although scientists are making progress, the prognosis for reversing long-term paralysis is currently bleak.
Paraplegia - Refers to impairment of loss of motor and/or sensory function in the thoracic, lumbar or sacral (but not cervical) segments of the spinal cord, secondary to damage of neural elements within the spinal canal. WIth paraplegia, arm functioning is spared, but, depending on the level of injury, the trunk, legs, and pelvic organs may be involved. There are some types of paralysis involving the legs that are described by the impairment they cause (see Clinical Syndromes).
Paraplegic - One who has loss of function below the cervical spinal cord segments, wherein the upper body retains most function and sensation
Physical Therapist (PT) - A key member of the rehabilitation team.
Physical Therapy (PT) - Structured activity focused on mobility skills (bed, transfers, wheelchair use, walking), leg flexibility and strengthening, trunk control and balance, endurance training, and using adaptive equipment to facilitate mobility.
Pressure Release - Relieving pressure from the ischial turberosities (bones on which we sit) every 15 min. in order to prevent pressure sores.
Skin Sores - Also known as skin sore or decubitus ulcer. A breakdown in the skin due to pressure that results in tissue death and sometimes infection.
Prosthesis - Replacement device for a body part, for example an artificial limb.
Quad - Generally, a high quad is someone with an injury at C1, C2, and C3. some doctors also group c4 quads into this category. Mid-level quads are those injured at C5. Low-level quads are those injured at C6 & C7. This isn't written in stone, and some doctors consider C4, C5, and C6 all as mid-level, with C7 being low-level.
Quadriplegia - Loss of function of any injured or diseased cervical spinal cord segment, affecting all four body limbs. Outside the U.S. the term tetraplegia is used (which is etymologically more accurate, combining tetra + plegia, both from the Greek, rather than quadri + plegia, a Latin/Greek amalgam).
Range of motion (ROM) exercises - The normal range of motion of any body joint. Also refers to body exercises designed to maintain this range and prevent contractures.
Rehabilitation - The first thing to remember with reference to spinal cord injury rehabilitation is that a person with spinal cord injury needs care for recuperation and survival. U.S. News has ranked some of the best rehabilitation hospitals in 17 specialties. Detailed information on the hospitals can be found by selecting a hospital.
Self-Catheterization - Intermittent catheterization, the goal of which is to empty the bladder as needed, on one's own, minimizing risk of infection.
Skin Breakdown (also termed "decubitus ulcers") occurs as a result of excessive pressure, primarily over the bones of the buttock.
Spasticity - Hyperactive muscles that move or jerk involuntarily.
The Spinal Cord Injured Female Orgasm Fertility, Childbirth, and Contraception
T he Spinal Cord Injured MaleEjaculation, Orgasm, and Coitis
Tetraplegia - (Quadriplegia) Refers to impairment or loss of motor and/or sensory function in the cervical segments of the spinal cord due to damage of neural elements within the spinal canal. Tetraplegia results in impairment of function in the arms as well as in the trunk, legs, and pelvic organs. It does not include brachial plexus lesions or injury to peripheral nerves outside the neural canal.
Upper Motor Neurons - Long nerve cells that originate in the brain and travel in tracts through the spinal cord. Any injury to these nerves cuts off contact with brain control. Reflex activity is still intact, however resulting in spasticity. For men with upper motor neuron injuries, reflex erections are possible.
Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) - Bacterial invasion of the urinary tract, which includes bladder, bladder neck and urethra. Symptoms of UTI include urine that is cloudy, contains sediment and smells foul, and fever. UTI involving the kidneys is preventable but dangerous. Medications often prescribed for UTI include Keflex, Macrodantin, Furadantin, Septra, Bactim, Mandelamine, penicillin, and amoxicillin. Side effects vary, and may include nausea and vomiting, skin rash or hives.
Ventilator - Mechanical device to facilitate breathing in persons with impaired diaphragm function.
Send
e-mails to
wheelchairnation@sc.rr.com with questions or comments
about this web site. Copyright © 2007 by WheelChair Nation All rights reserved | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
