Our featured video and brief video clips share information about managing bowel function after sustaining a spinal cord injury. In this video, SCI Model Systems Researchers share how they helped individuals with SCI develop a bowel program.
Pain is a serious problem for many people with spinal cord injuries (SCI). Pain after SCI can occur in parts of the body where there is normal sensation (feeling) as well as areas that have little or no feeling.
Transferring in and out of your wheelchair puts higher stress on your arms and shoulders than anything else you do on a regular basis. Learning the correct way to transfer is extremely important in order to keep your arms functioning and pain-free.
Most people with spinal cord injuries (SCI) want to work yet need support, training and vocational rehabilitation services to help them obtain and keep a job. These sources of support may help to overcome many barriers that are outside the individual’s control, such as financial and health care issues, accessibility, ...
Spasticity is the uncontrolled tightening or contracting of the muscles that is common in individuals with spinal cord injuries. About 65%–78% of the SCI population have some amount of spasticity, and it is more common in cervical (neck) than thoracic (chest) and lumbar (lower back) injuries.
After a spinal cord injury (SCI), people often ask whether they will be able to walk again. Whether a person will be able to walk after an SCI depends on many factors. This factsheet describes the factors that make walking more likely after SCI and the treatments that can help ...
What you need to know?
Your spinal cord injury (SCI) might limit your ability to control your urine. You might not be able to stop urine from flowing, or you might not be able to release it.
Uncontrolled urination or inability to empty your bladder can have a negative effect on your ...
What you need to know?
Your ability to control urine release may be limited because of injury. You may not be able to stop urine from flowing out of your body, or you may not be able to release urine from your body.
The inability to control the release of urine is ...
What you need to know?
You may be able to continue driving safely again, depending on how serious your injury is and how much function you have regained.
If you can drive, you may need to buy a vehicle that suits your unique needs after the injury.
Vehicles can be altered with special ...
What is sexuality?
Your sexuality is what guides your natural desire to bond with others through love, affection, and intimacy. Here are a few ways you might express your sexuality.
Emotional connections — feeling close to someone.
Physical contact — acts of touching such as holding hands, hugging, kissing, cuddling, and sexual activity.
Sexual ...
Autonomic Dysreflexia (AD), sometimes referred to as Autonomic Hyperreflexia, is a potentially life-threatening medical condition that many people with spinal cord injury (SCI) experience when there is a pain or discomfort below their level of injury, even if the pain or discomfort cannot be felt.
People with SCI are more likely than the general population to have health problems related to not being active. Regular exercise can help to reduce the risk of health problems after SCI.
What is acute inpatient rehabilitation?
Acute inpatient rehabilitation (rehab) is an intensive form of medical rehabilitation in which patients receive three or more hours per day of core therapies (physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy) overseen by a physician specialized in rehabilitation with around the clock nursing care. This team ...
Introduction
Sleep problems occur in more than 50% of people who have had severe burn injuries. Insomnia is the most common type of sleep problem. Insomnia can take many forms, including:
Difficulty falling asleep.
Difficulty staying asleep.
Poor quality sleep.
Waking too early.
Nightmares.
Sleep problems are especially common right after burn injury and during the healing ...
Many factors may cause body image concerns after a burn injury. These include how a person feels about his or her burns; flawed coping strategies; and a person’s gender, mental health history, and support network.
Some burn injury survivors have changes in their appearance. They may worry about how people will react to them when they leave the hospital and go out in public.