Spinal cord injuries can be very devastating. First we will discuss the spinal cord's structure and function. Then we will tell you how the spinal cord is most commonly injured, along with some statistics involved and some signs of spinal cord injury. We will explain some changes to the body after spinal injuries. Finally we will talk about some of the research in helping spinal cord injury victims. The spinal cord is the final common pathway from the brain to the muscles. It controls all the sensory inputs received from different locations throughout the body. The spinal cord also controls voluntary muscle responses. Some elementary reflexes are local to the spinal cord, but voluntary muscle control requires the brain as do sensory perceptions. The cells that mediate all functions are nerve cells or neurons.(Spinal Cord- http://anatomy.uams.edu/HTMLpages/anatomyhtml/pp_spinal html) The spinal cord includes nerve cells and axon. Axons carry signals downward from the brain and upward toward the brain. The spinal cord is composed of "white matter" which is myelinated, and since the spinal cord is part of the central nervous system the myelin is produced by oligodendrocytes. The spinal cord also has "gray matter", which is cell bodies, and is the part of the spinal cord that looks like a butterfly. Meninges (membranes) protect the spinal cord. There are three layers; the dura mater, which is the tougher, outermost layer, the arachnoid mater; it is the delicate, middle layer, and the pia mater is the innermost layer.(The American Medical Association family medical guide-Random House, Inc. New York, 1987) The spinal cord runs through a chain of boney rings known as vertebrae. This vertebral column protects the spinal cord which act like a telephone cable sending messages of feeling and sensation to the brain which converts them into responses such as movement.(What is a Spinal Cord Injuryhttp://www.
