What is a spinal injury?

The spine is the central nerve communication channel of the body. When the bones of the spine are damaged there will generally be healing - but damage to the spinal cord itself is irreversible.

The spinal cord is a part of the vertebrate nervous system that is enclosed and protected by the spinal column. Coming off the spinal cord are 31 pairs of spinal nerves. These nerves, within the spinal cord are called Upper Motor Neurons and their job is to carry messages back and forth from the brain to the spinal nerves along the spinal cord.  The spinal nerves that branch out from the spinal cord to the other parts of the body are called Lower Motor Neurons.  The sensory and motor parts of the spinal cord are located within the Upper Motor Neurons and carry messages to the brain about sensation and to initiate actions such as muscle movement.

Spinal cord injury or myelopathy is a disturbance of the spinal cord that results in loss of sensation and mobility. The 2 common types of spinal injury are Trauma and Disease.

The spinal cord does not have to be severed completely for loss of function to no occur. In most cases of spinal cord injury the spinal cord remains intact. A common cause of damage to the spinal cord is when the cord swells and is then damaged in the narrow space in the vertebrae. This damage results in the formation of scar tissue that prevents the formation of new nerve pathways, making the paralysis that has occurred, permanent.

It is possible to have a broken back or broken neck without being paralysed.  This happens when the vertebrate are damaged but the spinal cord is unharmed.

Find out more about spinal injuries by clicking on the link The effects of spinal injuries