Spinal Cord Injury healthcare information in one catch

What is SCI? Nervous System Overview

The way that the body moves and senses is under the control of the nervous system. The nervous system is made up of a network of thread-like nerves that run throughout the body. The nerves send information from the brain (the body’s control centre) to the rest of the body – instructing action such as movement of the muscles. In return, the senses (e.g., sight, touch) send information back to the brain. In this way, the body is able to move within, and react to, its surroundings. The bundle of nerves that runs from the brain into the spinal column (the ‘spine’ or ‘back bone’) is known as the spinal cord. The spinal cord provides the link between the brain and the rest of the nervous system. It can be broadly divided into four regions, termed the cervical (C), thoracic (T), lumbar (L) and sacral (S) regions. There are many nerves branching off from the spinal cord at specific points along its length – these points on the spinal cord and the nerves branching from them are named according to their position in the cervical, thoracic, lumbar or sacral regions – that is, C1 to C8, T1 to T12, L1 to L5 and S1 to S5 (see figure ‘Brain and spinal cord’). The nerves that run to and from the spinal cord control most of the body’s action. The figure ‘Spinal nerve control’ shows which spinal nerves control different parts of the body. An injury to the spinal cord may have an effect on the body’s ability to control its actions via these nerves. In a spinal cord injury, the cord may become directly damaged, stretched, pinched or pressed upon, and this can hinder the cord’s ability to send messages. As a result, the link between the brain and the rest of the body is interrupted and some parts of the body may not be able to communicate with the brain. Because each spinal nerve makes connections with specific parts of the body, the exact effect of an SCI depends upon the area of the spinal cord that is damaged. Click here for more information..

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