If your brain is the main-frame computer, your spinal cord is the main communications cable. And, if you’re a male, especially if you’re under 40, and especially if you’re kind of on the wild, physical side, your risk of damaging this vital body part is higher than it is for everyone else.
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What and where is the spinal cord exactly?
With your brain, your spinal cord makes up your central nervous system, which controls, well, most of your bodily functions.
The spinal cord itself is about 40cm long, extending from the base of the brain to your waist. This other ‘information superhighway’ is composed of long nerve fibres that carry messages to and from your brain. Nerve roots extend from the nerve fibres and emerge between your vertebrae (the 33 bones that form your spine), and lead into peripheral nerves that extend to the rest of your body.
The spinal cord is housed, not surprisingly, within your spine: it runs down through the openings within each vertebra. The vertebrae form a strong, yet reasonably flexible bony tube. The cord is also cushioned by spinal fluid and covering membranes.
What your spinal cord does for you
In a way, your spinal cord allows you to literally use mind over matter. You think: I want to scratch my head, and the spinal cord carries the lightning-fast message that moves your hand to your forehead. Without the spinal cord and its attendant nerves, your hand would be pretty much a lump of inanimate matter. And your brain would be as cut off from the world as if it were floating in a jar.
A break in the communications cable
Anyone can damage their spinal cord, of course, but it’s much more likely to happen if you’re male. According to the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Centre, University of Alabama, 79.6% of new spinal cord injury patients in the US are male. This is because men are more likely take part in activities that result in such injuries: driving (especially fast), contact and adventure sports, and violence. The average age men suffer spinal cord injuries is 37.6 years. There’s another peak when people move into their 60s: among the elderly, the major cause of spinal injury is falls.
A spinal cord injury may result from a sudden, traumatic blow to your spine that damages the vertebrae. It may also result from a gunshot or knife wound that penetrates the spinal cord. Further damage usually occurs after the injury because of swelling and inflammation. Nontraumatic spinal cord injury may be caused by such problems as arthritis, cancer, blood vessel problems or bleeding, inflammation or infections, or degeneration of the disks between the vertebrae.
Most trauma to the spinal cord causes permanent paralysis and loss of sensation below the injury site. In general, injuries higher up in the spinal cord result in more paralysis. For example, a spinal cord injury at the neck level may cause paralysis in both arms and legs and affect breathing, while an injury lower down the spinal column may affect only the legs and lower parts of the body: bowel and bladder control, and sexual function, may also be affected. Spinal injuries occur most frequently in the neck and lower back areas.
What you can do for your spinal cord
Don’t take your ego (or alcohol) behind the wheel. Have your vehicle serviced regularly and consider going on an advanced driving course. Always wear a seatbelt,and buckle up before you start the engine, not 10km into the drive.
Look before you leap. People really do dive into empty swimming-pools. And don’t dive into mountain pools or the sea unless you can see your way clear, or you’ve checked the area thoroughly first to make sure there aren’t any hidden obstacles. Remember refraction: depths underwater seen from the air are hard to gauge accurately.
Think carefully about your favourite sporting activities, and how you can make them safer. Wear protective gear like helmets, keep your torso as fit and flexible as possible, so that your muscles can help support and protect your spine, and don’t take unnecessary risks. Before you take up a new sport, consider the associated risks of spinal injury: contact sports and adventure sports carry higher risks for spinal injury. And, if you have a young son, you might want to gently nudge him in the direction of the less traumatic sports.
Avoid falls. This is especially important if you’re over 60, but really it applies at any age. Overhaul your home to make it fall-proof by e,g, installing non-slip mats or removing treacherous ones, especially in the bathroom; and installing stair rails.
Did you know?
Paralysis involving all four limbs is called quadriplegia or tetraplegia; paralysis of only the lower body is called paraplegia.
Motor vehicle accidents account for roughly half of spinal cord injuries.
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