Paralysis- are you scared?

   In our spine, each bone is arranged in a long line down the body, which are connected by joints and intervertebral discs. There is a gap in the middle of the bone, which is the location of the spinal cord. Therefore, when abnormalities occur in bones, joints, or intervertebral discs, there is a chance that such nerves will be harmed and damaged, resulting in paralysis.

Symptoms indicating that nerves have been affected are as follows:

• Neck – pain at neck, shoulders, arms and head, weakness or numbness of the arms, hands, fingers. If it is very severe, it can cause complete or half paralysis.
• Thoracic - pain in the middle of the back or between the shoulder blades, numbness and weakness from chest down to the feet, loss of control of bowel movements, stools, and urination.
• Waist – pain at back, leg referred to the toes, partial muscle weakness. You may stumble and your shoes can come off.
• Buttocks – pain at the buttocks, numbness around the buttocks and genitals, inability to hold stool.

Causes

• Age-related deterioration of bones, joints, and intervertebral discs
• Certain diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, autoimmune diseases affecting the bones, osteoporosis
• Infectious conditions, such as tuberculosis of the spine, bacterial spine infection
• Spinal tumor or metastasis cancer to the spine
• Congenital spine deformity
• Spinal injuries from accidents

Treatment

          Treatment options, such as taking medications (painkillers, nerve tonics) and physiotherapy, are suitable for patients with mild symptoms. For patients with severe symptoms or with ineffective drug treatment, surgical treatment may be considered.

Surgical treatment

Surgical treatment is aimed at

• Remove any pinched nerves to prevent further disability.
• Strengthen the spine to be in the most normal condition.
• Recover the body and nervous system faster.
• Prevent following complications, such as pressure sores, lung infections, muscle atrophy, and weakness, etc.

There are several methods of surgery depending on the type and characteristic of that disease, however, present surgery can be divided into 2 major types:

1. General spinal surgery
2. Spinal surgery with a small wound about 2.5 cm in size by inserting a tube for the less pain, quick recovery, and returning to work in a short time.