Paraplegia Complications

Paraplegia exists when a person affected by an inherited condition, an illness or an injury experiences loss of mobility in their lower body. Because paraplegia is most often caused by a disruption to the spinal cord - the channel through which nerve impulses between the brain and the body travel - people with paraplegia also suffer from damage to sensory nerves in the brain. This damage leads to a variety of other complications resulting from alteration of the brain''s control over numerous physiological functions.

Spinal cord injury and illness that lead to paraplegia can come in many forms. Car accidents, falls and wounds from violent acts are the leading causes of accident-related spinal cord injury. Diseases such as polio and spina bifida also cause severe damage to the spinal cord. The spinal cord need not be severed in order for loss of feeling and function (paraplegia) to occur. Generally, the higher up the damage is on the spinal cord, the greater the amount of dysfunction the victim will experience.

The level of spinal cord damage associated with paraplegia varies depending on the causes of the paraplegia, and the methods of treatment for paraplegia complications are symptom-related. There is not a cure for spinal cord injury or paraplegia, but therapies - both psychological and medical - can ease emotional and physical symptoms. It is possible for some people with paraplegia to regain some functioning of their lower limbs if the swelling of their spinal cord subsides after their injury or later in the stages of their illness. However, only a very small fraction of people with paraplegia regain all functioning.

Paraplegia complications affect nearly all systems in the body, from reproductive system to respiratory system. Paraplegia can result in both a physical loss of sexual function, damaging the fertility of both men and women, and a decreased sexual desire. Bladder dysfunction is also a common paraplegia complication.

The most dangerous paraplegia complication is damage to the respiratory system. Disease of the respiratory system - most commonly pneumonia - is the leading cause of death for people with paraplegia. Paraplegia complications that affect the respiratory system occur when signals from the brain no longer flow through the spinal cord to control the respiratory muscles. In severe cases of respiratory damage, the use of a ventilator is required. Respiratory complications may also result in sleep apnea, a breathing disorder that causes irregular nighttime breathing, snoring and disrupted sleep patterns.

Other paraplegia complications may result in skin conditions, such as pressure sores and loss of elasticity, bone disorders, such as osteoporosis and fractures, and blood flow complications. Autonomic dysreflexia (AD), a paraplegia complication with multiple causes and symptoms, occurs when the spinal cord injury or disease damages the control mechanisms for blood pressure. AD can be related to bladder disorders and stroke.

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