Causes of paraplegia

Paraplegia is caused by damage to the spinal cord or to the nerves that carry signals to the legs. It can be traumatic or non-traumatic.

Traumatic causes

• Road traffic accidents
• Falls, including from heights
• Sports and diving injuries
• Violence and gunshot or stab wounds
• Spinal fractures and dislocations

Non-traumatic causes

• Spinal tuberculosis (Pott's disease) and other spinal infections or abscesses
• Tumours in or pressing on the spinal cord
• Spinal cord stroke or poor blood supply
• Transverse myelitis: inflammation of the cord
• Multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases
• Spina bifida and other birth conditions
• Severe spinal stenosis or disc prolapse
• Vitamin B12 deficiency and some toxins
• Complications of spinal surgery or anaesthesia
• Guillain-Barre syndrome and other nerve diseases can cause leg paralysis, though they are not spinal cord injuries

Risk factors

Young men have a higher rate of traumatic injury. Older adults often have falls and degenerative spine disease.

Ayurvedic view

Ayurveda attributes limb paralysis to Vata aggravation, injury (Abhighata) and tissue depletion. This is an interpretive framework and not a causal explanation.

Emergency: do not move someone with a possible spinal injury. Call 112 and keep the head and back in line.

See a doctor if you have back pain with leg weakness, numbness or loss of bladder control.

When to get help

Contact your rehabilitation doctor or spinal injury centre if you notice new weakness, skin redness, fever, burning urine, new pain or spasms that interfere with daily life. Call 112 for sudden severe headache with pounding heart, chest pain or breathlessness.

Remember

Quick treatment of the cause, such as surgery for compression or treatment for infection, can limit damage.