Paraplegia

Paraplegia is the consequence of an attack to the spinal-cord. It is generally associated with disorders driving, vésico-sphinctériens and génito-sexual, whose gravity varies according to the level of the lesion. It is due to a lesion of the dorsal or lumbar spinal-cord, generally caused by an accident, a wound or a wound by ball. It can be secondarily due to another form of medullary attack (intervertebral disc, tumor, vascular lesions), with the multiple sclerosis, an infection or an abscess of the spinal-cord, and a congenital malformation.

The motricity of the upper limbs being controlled by the C5 levels than C8 (5° with 8° nervous roots), a paraplegia is usually caused by a lesion located in lower part of the 7° cervical vertebra and above the lumbar vertebra L2. Indeed, after L2 the sleeve dural is which contains the roots of the tail of horse. A lesion lower than L2 thus does not cause driving paralysis but disorders vésico-sphinctériens.

A paraplegia can be complete or incomplete:

  • complete: complete absence of sensitivity and motricity in lower part of the lesion.

  • incomplete: persistence of a sensitivity or a voluntary motricity in lower part of the lesion, in particular in the sector périnéal.

Under the term of paraplegia, one also gathers the Tétraplégie, which is characterized some by a cervical and nondorso-lumbar lesion.

See also: medullary Traumatism

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