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product_liability crash_worthinessParalysis of both the arms and legs is called quadriplegia. Quadriplegia is the result of an injury to the spinal cord, and although it is possible to retain sensation and movement after a spinal cord injury, in most instances permanent disability or loss of movement and sensation below the site of the injury will be suffered. The devastating injury is most often caused by accidents, including motor vehicle accidents, falls, sports injuries and acts of violence.
A quadriplegic is unable to move both their arms and legs because the spinal cord injury interferes with the brain’s ability to communicate through the nervous system with other parts of the body. Every year, about 11,000 Americans will suffer a spinal cord injury, adding to the 200,000 people living with some type of spinal cord disability in the U.S. Because over half the people living with a spinal cord injury were suffered between the ages of 16 and 30, the majority of quadriplegics must suddenly adjust to disability within the most traditionally active years of their lives.
For quadriplegics under the age of 65, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of spinal cord injury. The devastating injury does not just interfere with a person physically, but the presence of quadriplegia will force the patient, as well as family members and friends, to realize everyday activities will be affected, which can be emotionally difficult to adapt to as well.
In the past, a spinal cord injury resulting in quadriplegia was usually fatal. Currently, there is no way of reversing the damage suffered to the spinal cord, but major advances have been made and are expected in the next decade. These quadriplegia advances have improved recovery, as well as drastically reduced the amount of time required in the hospital. Quadriplegia treatment is mainly focused on allowing patients to return to the most active and productive lives that they can, given limits of their disability.
head or neck injury suffered in a car accident should be immediately addressed by taking all necessary precautions to limit further injuring the person. If the spinal cord has been injured, it is essential that the neck be immobilized so that more damage is not done. Addressing the injury that caused the loss of function, using medication, traction surgery or a combination, will treat quadriplegia in the earliest stages. Treatment can be difficult, and quadriplegics can expect ongoing care and treatments to improve remaining muscle strength and to help the patient gain the best mobility and independence.
Unfortunately, accidents resulting in quadriplegia cannot all be prevented, but there are some safety precautions that can be taken. Ever year, forty percent of new spinal cord injuries are caused by auto and motorcycle accidents, the leading cause of all spinal cord injuries, so improving auto safety can help reduce the number of quadriplegics. One of the biggest auto safety concerns in recent years has been the high fatality rate of rollover accidents, as well as the devastating head and neck injuries suffered.
Rollover crashes account for just three percent of vehicle crashes, but they are responsible for a third of all crash fatalities, or 10,000 deaths a year in the U.S. Due to the forces applied to vehicle occupants in a rollover crash, head and neck injuries that can lead to catastrophic head and spinal cord injuries are suffered far too often. For years, government regulators have promised to update current standards dating back from 1971, but the auto agency has failed to live up to their repeated promises.
Auto safety experts believe simply improving a vehicle’s resistance to roof crush would prevent injuries like quadriplegia, but automakers have claimed roof strength and injuries in rollover crashes are unrelated, according to a new report that disputes these claims. According to Public Citizen President Joan Claybrook, “strengthening roofs and installing other basic safety devices, such as side head air bags, safety glass and pretensioned belts, is the only way to save lives in rollover crashes,” adding arguments made by auto manufacturers claiming head injuries are because of people “diving” into the roofs of their cars is “ludicrous.”
The report’s author, Martha Bidez, added the industry’s own rollover test data presents “unequivocal evidence that roof crush can and does cause catastrophic injury and death.” Strengthening roofs are just one way of preventing serious injuries like quadriplegia in just one area of auto accidents, but it could have a significant impact, according to safety experts.
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