Paraplegia is paralysis
of the lower body and legs. There are different
classifications of spinal cord injury, and
paraplegia affects the thoracic, lumbar,
or sacral segments. Motor vehicles, falls,
sports, and violence most often cause paraplegia.
Spinal cord injuries affect at least 7,800
people in the U.S. every year, and this
figure includes paraplegia. Paraplegia is
a permanent condition that can greatly alter
an individual's lifestyle. In paraplegia
cases where the spinal cord nerves are severed
the physical conditions become irreversible,
but any spinal cord injury, like paraplegia
does not result in mental impairments.
There are two types
of spinal cord injuries that result in paralysis,
paraplegia and quadriplegia that results
depend on the degree of injury or disease
and what position it occurs on the spinal
cord. Paraplegia does not have the use of
his/her legs and feet and some lower body
muscles, and the paraplegia injury can have
a significant psychological trauma. Life
expectancy for paraplegia patients is normally
90% of what is expected for the able bodied
population.
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