Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-m6dg7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-02T22:21:43.853Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

3.13.4 - Traumatic Spinal Cord Injuries

from Section 3.13 - Severe Trauma and Multiple Injuries

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 July 2023

Ned Gilbert-Kawai
Affiliation:
The Royal Liverpool Hospital
Debashish Dutta
Affiliation:
Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust, Harlow
Carl Waldmann
Affiliation:
Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading
Get access

Summary

Key Learning Points

  1. 1. Traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI) is a devastating event which can lead to transient or permanent nerve damage, with a peak incidence in young adult males.

  2. 2. The American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) impairment scale is a helpful tool for diagnosing and classifying the severity of cord injury.

  3. 3. Initial management should follow established advanced trauma and life support (ATLS) guidance using a systematic approach.

  4. 4. Early priorities include prevention of secondary spinal injury and timely identification of an unstable fracture.

  5. 5. TSCI can cause organ dysfunction, depending on the level of injury, and may require support to optimise physiological parameters.

Type
Chapter
Information
Intensive Care Medicine
The Essential Guide
, pp. 406 - 407
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

References and Further Reading

ATLS Subcommittee; American College of Surgeons’ Committee on Trauma; International ATLS working group. Advanced trauma life support (ATLS®): the ninth edition. J Trauma Acute Care Surg 2013;74:1363–6.Google Scholar
Bonner, S, Smith, C. Initial management of acute spinal cord injury. Contin Educ Anaesth Crit Care Pain 2013;13:224–31.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Denton, M, McKinlay, J. Cervical cord injury and critical care. Contin Educ Anaesth Crit Care Pain 2009;9:82–6.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
World Health Organization. International perspectives on spinal cord injury. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2013.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×