Upper and Lower Motor Neuron
Dec 18, 2017 3:16:42 GMT -8
Post by Lαrα on Dec 18, 2017 3:16:42 GMT -8
I remember, when I was in my spinal unit, the physio mentioning on several occassions that FES would not work on me due to being Lower Motor Neurone. Due to this, they had to manually manipulate the calf muscles that had little or no signal to them to try and activate a response . Whether you are classed as 'Upper' or 'Lower' Motor Neuron, does make a significant difference in how your injury will present itself.
This is an extract taken from Spinal Hub
Upper motor neuron (UMN) spinal cord injury
You have an upper motor neuron (UMN) injury if your injury is above the conus medullaris, and your spinal nerves at L2-L5 and S1-S5 are intact. When these nerves are intact reflex activity is able to take place. This is also called reflex paralysis.
UMN injuries involve:
loss of voluntary movement below the level of your injury
loss of sensory perception (feeling) below the level of your injury
increased muscle tone, which often leads to spasm
retained reflexes after spinal shock subsides
reflex paralysis (spastic paralysis).
You have an upper motor neuron (UMN) injury if your injury is above the conus medullaris, and your spinal nerves at L2-L5 and S1-S5 are intact. When these nerves are intact reflex activity is able to take place. This is also called reflex paralysis.
UMN injuries involve:
loss of voluntary movement below the level of your injury
loss of sensory perception (feeling) below the level of your injury
increased muscle tone, which often leads to spasm
retained reflexes after spinal shock subsides
reflex paralysis (spastic paralysis).
and this:
Lower motor neuron (LMN) spinal cord injury
You have an LMN injury if the damage to your spinal cord is at or below the conus medullaris and involves the spinal nerves from L2-L5 and S1-S5 levels, the cauda equina, and S2-4 levels. This is also called lesion or flaccid paralysis.
An aortic aneurysm bursting can cause lack of blood supply to any level of your spinal cord. This can result in damage to your whole spinal cord, including your conus medullaris. This means your reflex activity will also be disrupted (disconnected).
LMN injuries result in:
loss of voluntary movement below the level of your injury
loss of sensory perception (feeling) below the level of your injury
decreased or absent resting muscle tone
severe muscle wasting below the level of your injury
loss of reflexes below the level of your injury
flaccid paralysis
You have an LMN injury if the damage to your spinal cord is at or below the conus medullaris and involves the spinal nerves from L2-L5 and S1-S5 levels, the cauda equina, and S2-4 levels. This is also called lesion or flaccid paralysis.
An aortic aneurysm bursting can cause lack of blood supply to any level of your spinal cord. This can result in damage to your whole spinal cord, including your conus medullaris. This means your reflex activity will also be disrupted (disconnected).
LMN injuries result in:
loss of voluntary movement below the level of your injury
loss of sensory perception (feeling) below the level of your injury
decreased or absent resting muscle tone
severe muscle wasting below the level of your injury
loss of reflexes below the level of your injury
flaccid paralysis
The reason that I have been thinking about these differences is because I also remember being told by the Physio's that I would suffer with spasms due to being Lower Motor Neuron. The thing is that I do experience spasms even though I am often told that I cannot experience them. I have decided to carry out my own research on this and run a questionnaire asking those with LMN questions regarding their own experiences.
I think that there are exceptions to the classifications and I would like to explore this further. It is highly important that those who do not have SCI but are 'experts' in this field actually understand that there are exceptions or that the research on this may not be reflecting the true situation of each individual.
I have asked many individuals with Cauda Equina if they experience spasms and they say they do, so we cant all be wrong! Please discuss any thoughts on this?
