So you’ve just received news that you’re suffering with a spinal cord injury after a serious car accident, and you have no idea what to think. You’ve always been an active person with a passion for running, tennis, basketball, and dancing. With this injury, you feel undefined—like someone pressed the “restart” button on life. Your old, active, interests are no longer possible, and your passion for life is fizzling away. All you hear is “T1-T12 paraplegia,” but have no idea how this rating applies to your daily life.
In the beginning it is extremely difficult to adjust to your new life, and the definitions and ratings that define your injury. There have been different scales that are used to measure the severity of the spinal cord injury. In the past, the Frankel scale was used to measure the injury and was designed at Stokes Manville in the 1930s. Research has come a long way since then, and the American Spinal Cord Injury Association has created the ASCIA scale to give doctors a good idea of the impairment a person is suffering from. However, this scale is still confusing for new patients, and it is important to fully understand what your spinal injury rating means.
Spinal Cord Anatomy
Understanding spinal anatomy is the only way to fully understand your injury and the newfound challenges you face. Firstly, the spinal cord and the spine are separate structures. The spinal cord has nerve cells and fibers that run along the brain to just above the tailbone. The spinal cord has the job of relaying different nerve signals to the brain. The spinal cord is also separated into different segments, which correspond to each of the vertebrae. The tricky part to understand is that the spinal cord segments are named in a way where the location does not always correspond to the spinal segment’s location. An example of this is that: the C1 and C1 cord are on the same level, but the C7 vertebra holds the C-8 cord.
T1-T12 Paraplegia
In our case example above, a person was diagnosed with T1-T12 paraplegia, or thoracic paraplegia. This is when someone has nerve sensation and function of all upper extremities and can be functionally independent. This means that they can manage their bladder and bowels, and they can also handle a wheelchair. Usually people with a thoracic paraplegia injury use a wheelchair to preserve their injury, but some people can even walk up and down stairs. A Toronto personal injury lawyer will ensure that you receive financial compensation for your injury after filing your spinal cord injury claims with you. It’s an important step in moving forward with your life after the injury.
Hiring a Toronto Personal Injury Lawyer
If you have suffered a severe spinal injury as the result of a car accident, a Toronto personal injury lawyer will ensure that you file your spinal cord injury claims correctly so that you can receive financial compensation. Spinal cord injury claims are filed against the negligent driver or person, while a lawyer will help you to secure the funds you need to live a healthy life. Book an appointment with a Sokoloff lawyer to file your spinal cord injury claims today.
Sources:
http://www.brainandspinalcord.org/content/levels_of_spinal_cord_injury