Rehabilitation for C5 Spinal Cord Injury

Spinal Cord Injury -- the part of the body that relays nerve signals from the brain -- is made of boney disks known as vertebrae that stack on top of each other to form a column. A sudden blow to the vertebrae -- for example, from a sports injury or a large fall -- can dislocate or fracture a part of the spinal cord. However, most injuries are less severe, usually resulting in pieces of vertebrae tearing into cord tissue or pressing down on the nerve tissue that sends signals. After the injury has been treated, a lengthy rehabilitation is needed to restore all possible functions.

C5 Spinal Nerve

The spinal cord injury includes several main parts. The topmost division, known as the cervical spine nerve, controls many of the muscles in the neck and arms. The C5 spinal nerve occurs on the fifth vertebra down and controls parts of the shoulders and biceps. However, every nerve below an injury site is affected, so a complete spinal cord injury will cause paralysis of the body and legs, in addition to the fingers and wrists. It is likely that you will retain full head and neck movement and good control of your shoulders, but if elbow movement is compromised, then you will be unable to bend or straighten the joint.

Rehabilitation will be mostly geared toward coping with and adapting to a change in lifestyle. Yet, depending upon the classification of the injury, muscle strength and mobility in many parts of the body may be regained to a certain degree. Those that are classified as an A injury are complete: nerve signals cannot be conveyed below the injured vertebra. The classification of B denotes that sensory but not motor function is preserved. Some physical therapy may help for injuries ranging from C, in which more than half of the key muscles are not strong enough to move the joint against gravity, to D, in which more than half of the key muscles allow the joint to move against gravity. A classification of E means that motor and sensory functions are normal, and physical therapy can restore much of the lost function.

Rehabilitation for Spinal Cord Injury


An injury to the C5 vertebra, which supplies nerves to the diaphragm, may cause a momentary stop to breathing, requiring immediate ventilation support. Once the vertebra is treated and breathing functions improve, most patients can be weaned from the machine in the weeks following the injury. However, patients may still have low stamina. The goal of rehabilitation from that point forward is to help the patient learn to use a device such as a walker, leg braces or a wheelchair to move and also use certain communication technologies. Occupational therapy will allow the patient to redevelop motor skills, if possible, and relearn basic functions such as toileting routines and self-grooming. If the injury is complete, then the patient will need help getting in and out of a wheelchair and with domestic care and personal assistance around the house.