Sleep apnea may be even more common in the newly injured SCI population, since respiratory muscle weakness is more severe in the first several weeks following injury. It is possible that adjusting to the CPAP early on in the rehabilitation process may improve tolerance of the device over the long run and help people avoid sleep apnea and its associated problems in the future. It also may help patients to participate fully in therapies and learn the information and skills needed to take care of themselves after leaving the hospital. This disrupts the signals going from the brain to the legs, the arms, and sometimes the breathing muscles. The most common traumatic cause of SCI is motor vehicle collisions.
Falls are another common cause.
Many older patients develop SCI from gradual narrowing of the spinal canal from arthritis. We usually hear terms like paraplegic and quadriplegic used when describing victims of spinal cord injury. Paraplegia means paralysis of both legs. Quadriplegia means paralysis of both arms and both legs. They mean exactly the same thing.