New Hope for Spinal Cord Injuries

After a fall at home left Anita Hastings unable to move her arms or legs, the outlook was grim. But three years later, the 69-year-old New Jersey woman walks 4 to 6 miles with a walker, drives, and has regained use of her arms and hands.

Her remarkable recovery highlights both the advances and challenges in treating traumatic spinal cord injuries — and the importance of rapid treatment followed by intensive rehabilitation.

Hastings suffered a cervical spinal cord injury after falling at home in 2023. She remained unable to move until a friend found her 12 to 14 hours later.

Dr. Jonathan Yun, a board-certified neurosurgeon at Neurosurgeons of New Jersey who treated Hastings, said she initially had quadriplegia, also known as tetraplegia, meaning the injury affected all four limbs.

Yun performed an anterior cervical discectomy and fusion, or ACDF, to relieve pressure on her spinal cord and stabilize her cervical spine.

Urgent medical care is critical after a serious neck or spinal injury because additional damage can occur from bleeding, swelling, and fluid accumulation around the spinal cord. Surgery may be needed to relieve compression and stabilize the spine.

Spinal Cord Injury by the Numbers

About 18,000 new traumatic spinal cord injuries occur in the United States each year, and an estimated 302,000 Americans are living with one.

A traumatic spinal cord injury can occur when a sudden blow fractures, dislocates, crushes, or compresses the vertebrae or directly damages the spinal cord. This can disrupt the signals traveling between the brain and the rest of the body. Falls and motor vehicle crashes are among the common causes.

The severity of the disability depends largely on where the spinal cord is injured and whether the injury is complete or incomplete.

With a complete spinal cord injury, all sensation and voluntary movement are lost below the level of the injury. An incomplete injury means some sensation or ability to control movement remains below the injury. The degree of function and potential for recovery varies widely from person to person.

A Long Road Back

Emergency surgery was only the beginning for Hastings.

She spent 90 days in rehabilitation followed by another 10 weeks in an assisted living facility. When she eventually returned home, she still used a specialized wheelchair and Hoyer lift and required around-the-clock assistance.

"Eventually, she regained function, the ability to walk and use her arms and hands and really turned her life around," said Yun, adding that the brain and spinal cord recover at slow rates.

Recovery from a spinal cord injury can continue for months or even years, although the extent of recovery varies greatly depending on the location and severity of the injury and other factors.

Hastings' experience illustrates that an initial prognosis does not always predict the ultimate outcome, Yun says.

"Therefore, we as physicians and patients should strive to work toward better outcomes, especially in terms of spinal cord injury," he says. "This includes timely diagnosis and rapid medical and surgical intervention as well as active, ongoing participation in therapy and rehabilitation."

While existing treatments cannot reverse spinal cord damage, surgery, rehabilitation, assistive technologies, and ongoing medical care can help prevent further injury and allow many people with SCI to regain function and independence. Researchers are also investigating treatments aimed at protecting damaged nerve cells and promoting nerve regeneration.

When Spinal Cord Injury Is an Emergency

Any suspected spinal cord injury after an accident requires immediate medical attention. According to the Mayo Clinic, warning signs include:

• Severe back pain or pressure in the neck, head, or back

• Weakness, loss of coordination, or loss of control in any part of the body

• Numbness, tingling, or loss of feeling in the hands, fingers, feet, or toes

• Loss of bladder or bowel control

• Difficulty with balance or walking

• Trouble breathing after an injury

• An abnormally positioned or twisted neck or back

If a spinal injury is suspected, call 911 and keep the person still. Do not move the person's head or neck or attempt to reposition them unless movement is necessary for immediate safety or lifesaving care.

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