spinal polio

Examples of spinal polio in the following topics:

• Poliomyelitis

  • Spinal polio is the most common form, characterized by asymmetric paralysis that most often involves the legs .
  • Bulbar polio leads to weakness of muscles innervated by cranial nerves.
  • Bulbospinal polio is a combination of bulbar and spinal paralysis.
  • Although major polio epidemics were unknown before the late 19th century, polio was one of the most dreaded childhood diseases of the 20th century.
  • Developed in the 1950s, polio vaccines are credited with reducing the global number of polio cases per year from many hundreds of thousands to today under a thousand.

• Reticular Formation

  • Somatic motor control - Some motor neurons send their axons to the reticular formation nuclei, giving rise to the reticulospinal tracts of the spinal cord.
  • The nerve fibers in these pathways act in the spinal cord to block the transmission of some pain signals to the brain.
  • Lesions in the reticular formation have been found in the brains of people who have post-polio syndrome.

• Overview of the Spinal Cord

  • A lumbar puncture (spinal tap) is an example of a medical procedure that directly targets the spinal cord.
  • The spinal cord is divided into cervical, thoracic, and lumbar regions.
  • The spinal nerves of the thoracic region supply the thorax and abdomen.
  • Thirty-one pairs of spinal nerves (sensory and motor) branch from the human spinal cord.
  • The spinal nerve emerges from the spinal column through the opening (intervertebral foramen) between adjacent vertebrae.

• Spinal Cord Trauma

  • A spinal cord injury (SCI) refers to any injury to the spinal cord that is caused by trauma and not disease.
  • A spinal cord injury (SCI) refers to any injury to the spinal cord that is caused by trauma instead of disease.
  • The American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) first published an international classification of spinal cord injury in 1982, called the International Standards for Neurological and Functional Classification of Spinal Cord Injury.
  • An incomplete spinal cord injury involves preservation of motor or sensory function below the level of injury in the spinal cord.
  • Autonomic dysreflexia (AD) occurs most often in spinal cord-injured individuals with spinal lesions above the T6 spinal cord level, although, it has been known to occur in patients with a lesion as low as T10.

• Branches of Spinal Nerves

  • The spinal nerves branch into the dorsal ramus, ventral ramus, the meningeal branches, and the rami communicantes.
  • Nerves emerging from a plexus contain fibers from various spinal nerves, which are now carried together to some target location.
  • The meningeal branches (recurrent meningeal or sinuvertebral nerves): These branch from the spinal nerve and re-enter the intervertebral foramen to serve the ligaments, dura, blood vessels, intervertebral discs, facet joints, and periosteum of the vertebrae.
  • This diagram depicts the course and branches of a typical thoracic spinal nerve.

• Spinal Cord Grey Matter and Spinal Roots

  • The length of the spinal cord is much shorter than the length of the bony spinal column.
  • The spinal cord is compressed dorsoventrally, giving it an elliptical shape .
  • Each segment of the spinal cord is associated with a pair of ganglia, called dorsal root ganglia, which are situated just outside of the spinal cord.
  • Hence, the spinal ganglia can be regarded as grey matter of the spinal cord that became translocated to the periphery.
  • Describe the grey matter and spinal roots of the spinal cord

• Spinal Cord Compression

  • Spinal cord compression occurs when the spinal cord is compressed by bone fragments.
  • Spinal cord compression develops when the spinal cord is compressed by bone fragments from a vertebral fracture, a tumor, abscess, ruptured intervertebral disc, or other lesion .
  • It is regarded as a medical emergency independent of its cause, and requires swift diagnosis and treatment to prevent long-term disability due to irreversible spinal cord injury.
  • The median survival of patients with metastatic spinal cord compression is about 12 weeks, reflecting the generally advanced nature of the underlying malignant disease.
  • In spinal cord compression, the spinal cord (shown here) may be compressed by bone fragments from a vertebral fracture, a tumor, abscess, ruptured intervertebral disc, or other lesion.

• Overview of the Spinal Nerves

  • The term spinal nerve generally refers to a mixed spinal nerve that carries motor, sensory, and autonomic signals between the spinal cord and the body.
  • Each spinal nerve is formed by the combination of nerve fibers from the dorsal and ventral roots of the spinal cord.
  • The spinal nerve emerges from the spinal column through an opening (intervertebral foramen) between adjacent vertebrae.
  • This is true for all spinal nerves except for the first spinal nerve pair, which emerges between the occipital bone and the atlas (the first vertebra).
  • Spinal nerves arise from a combination of nerve fibers from the dorsal and ventral roots of the spinal cord.

• Spinal Tap

  • A lumbar puncture, or spinal tap, is a procedure used to collect a sample of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), typically for diagnostic purposes.
  • A spinal needle is inserted between the lumbar vertebrae L3/L4 or L4/L5 and pushed into the subarachnoid space.
  • The stylet from the spinal needle is then withdrawn and drops of cerebrospinal fluid are collected.
  • Post-spinal headache with nausea is the most common complication, and it often responds to analgesics and infusion of fluids.
  • They include spinal or epidural bleeding and trauma to the spinal cord or spinal nerve roots resulting in weakness or loss of sensation, or even paraplegia.

• Spina Bifida

  • Some vertebrae overlying the spinal cord are not fully formed and remain unfused and open.
  • As a result, there is usually some degree of paralysis and loss of sensation below the level of the spinal cord defect.
  • The spinal cord lesion or the scarring due to surgery may result in a tethered spinal cord.
  • In some individuals, this causes significant traction and stress on the spinal cord.
  • Spina bifida in the lumbar area. (1) External sac with cerebrospinal fluid. (2) Spinal cord wedged between the vertebrae.