Mayo Clinic - Mayo Clinic Guide to Living with a Spinal Cord Injury: Moving Ahead with Your Life

Mayo Clinic Guide to Living with a Spinal Cord Injury

Mayo Clinic Guide to Living with a Spinal Cord Injury

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2009 Mayo Clinic. All rights reserved. This book is protected by copyright. No part of it may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research in care of the Section of Patient Education, 200 First Street S.W., Rochester, Minnesota 55905.

Medical information provided by Demos Health, in the absence of a visit with a health-care professional, must be considered as an educational service only. This book is not designed to replace a physicians independent judgment about the appropriateness or risks of a procedure or therapy for a given patient. Our purpose is to provide you with information that will help you make your own health-care decisions.

The information and opinions provided here are believed to be accurate and sound, based on the best judgment available to the authors, editors, and publisher, but readers who fail to consult appropriate health authorities assume the risk of any injuries. The authors, editors, and publisher are not responsible for errors or omissions. The editors and publisher welcome any reader to report to the publisher any discrepancies or inaccuracies noticed.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Mayo clinic guide to living with a spinal cord injury.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN-13: 978-1-932603-77-4 (pbk. : alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 1-932603-77-8 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Spinal cordWounds and injuries. RD594.3.M39 2009
617.482044dc22

2009005186

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Made in the United States of America

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If you are reading this book, more than likely your life has been in some way affected by spinal cord injury (SCI). Perhaps you have sustained such an injury, or possibly someone close to you. Regardless, becoming knowledgeable about managing the consequences of the injury is essential. The knowledge imparted in this book will help restore your hope for the future.

No doubt, life is changed when one sustains a spinal cord injury. The injury will likely place tremendous strains upon ones physical health, emotional health, relationships, career, finances, and a host of other life domains. People with spinal cord injuries and their families often become so overwhelmed that the best they can hope for is survival.

This book is not about merely surviving a spinal cord injuryit provides fundamental information necessary to thrive following an injury.

In the 15 years since I sustained my spinal cord injury, I have never been more positive that the future holds hope for people with spinal cord injuries. No society has ever been more accommodating to life with SCI. Medical advances and rehabilitation techniques have never been able to restore greater levels of independence to people with spinal cord injury. Research has never been closer to a cure for SCI.

This book will assist you to maximize your independence and quality of life following SCIuse it wisely and never lose hope in your future.

Paul J. Tobin

President

United Spinal Association

A spinal cord injury or disease can have dramatic effects on the person affected and his or her family. However, coordinated teamwork by nurses, therapists, technicians, psychologists, physicians and surgeons can help a person with a spinal cord injury return to the highest level of activity possible. Ongoing research continues to reveal new interventions and treatments, and today people with spinal cord injury recover more completely than any time in history. However, changes in the U.S. health care system have made it more challenging to provide all the information needed. Because hospital stays are now quite compressed in comparison to the past, time spent in the hospital is short, hectic and exhausting. For dozens of years, the material presented in this book has been the foundation of our educational program for patients. In recent years weve found that its much more difficult for us to deliver and for patients to embrace the educational material due to short hospital stays. This change was necessary, but it places the educational needs of patients and their families in jeopardy. Therefore, we hope the publication of the educational material in this book will help people with spinal cord injury advocate for their needs, proactively manage their health and partner with health care providers to enhance and maintain their wellness.

Mayo Clinic is a large multi-specialty healthcare delivery system that is built upon an integrated model of care, teamwork, research and education. Mayo Clinics primary value is The needs of the patient come first. Over the last 40 years Mayo Clinic has served individuals with spinal cord disorders through its coordinated spinal cord injury program. Throughout the history of the program patient education has been of paramount importance. The material presented in this book represents the collective work of the therapists, nurses, psychologists, physicians and educators who wrote and revised it for the benefit of the patients they served. Because hundreds of Mayo Clinic staff members have contributed to this book, individual authors are not listed. This book is the product of interdisciplinary teamwork, one of the hallmarks of Mayo Clinic care. Additionally, feedback from our patients and their evolving needs over time have shaped the content and guided countless revisions of the material presented in this book. We owe thanks to all the patients who have provided feedback over the years.

The topics presented in this book may raise additional questions. The final section of the book contains resources that may be helpful in answering those questions. Clinicians specializing in spinal cord injury are also an important source of information, especially because new information is continually available. These clinicians can be found in specialized spinal cord injury centers around the world. State, national and international organizations focused on spinal cord care are also an important source for new information. The content of this book is the basic material many people with a spinal cord injury or disease need to know. The utility of the information we present in this book has been tested and used for years and our patients have told us it is helpful. We hope you will find it useful as well. New innovations in care are constantly being developed and many of the web sites listed at the end of the book are excellent resources for cutting edge information.

This preface would be incomplete without highlighting Dr. Joachim Optiz for his pioneering leadership of the Mayo Clinic Spinal Cord Injury Program in its formative years. He led the initial efforts to write and systematically update early versions of this book. His attention to detail, inquisitive spirit and dedication to patient care built the foundation of our program and we are the beneficiaries of his creative vision.