How to walk with paraplegia

The direct cause of paraplegia is damage to the spinal cord located within the spinal column by trauma or disease, resulting in complete or incomplete impairment of somatic and motor, sensory, and autonomic functions below the plane of injury, especially cauda equina function, leading to immobility of the limbs, lack of sensation, and urinary and fecal incontinence. If the site of injury is in the cervical spine, the function of both upper and lower limbs will be affected, which is medically known as paraplegia, also called quadriplegia. If the injury is below the thoracic spine, it only affects the function of both lower limbs, medically known as paraplegia. Incomplete quadriplegia is called quadriplegia minor, and incomplete paraplegia is called paraplegia minor. So, how can paraplegic patients carry out walking training? 1. For incomplete spinal cord injury patients: Do not rush to make and wear braces for them, but try to explore their residual potential and improve their muscle strength level. If the muscle strength of the key muscles reaches grade III or above, the patient can be trained to walk without support, especially if the muscle strength of the key muscles reaches grade IV or V, generally it can be easy to move out of bed. 2, for complete spinal cord injury: need to determine whether it has the possibility of walking, and then be trained. In principle, people with injuries below the 4th thoracic vertebra can walk indoors, and people with injuries below the 7th thoracic vertebra can return to walking outdoors. 3.For paraplegic patients who meet the requirements of walking: first of all, we should carry out upright training and upper limb muscle strength training. Firstly, we can do upright training with the help of the standing platform, usually training 3 times a day, half an hour each time, the training time is 3~4 weeks. Upper extremity muscle strength can be used dumbbells and braces training, each time should be trained to muscle soreness, but does not affect the next training until. 4, independent standing and balance training: can be 3 meters long, 0.8 meters wide, 1 meter high parallel bar. The therapist should assist the patient to hold the parallel bar with both hands, and avoid bending the knees when standing, and train 2~3 times a day, with a total time of 3 hours. 5.According to different injury planes: make and wear corresponding supports for patients, commonly used are ankle-foot orthosis, knee-ankle-foot orthosis, hip-knee-ankle-foot orthosis, paraplegic walking trainer. For the injury above the 2nd lumbar vertebra, the paraplegic walking trainer should be preferred; for the injury from 2nd to 4th lumbar vertebra, the knee-ankle-foot orthosis can be chosen; for the injury below the 5th lumbar vertebra, the ankle-foot orthosis should be chosen. 6, in the parallel bar with the help of suitable support walking: training does not seek quantity, but to pay attention to the quality, to be able to complete the requirements of the patient to transfer the weight – swinging leg – and then transfer the weight – swinging the other leg of the action, and then increase the amount of training, the maximum amount of training per day up to about 1 kilometer. This training usually lasts for 1 to 6 months. 7, in the walker support training walking: in the completion of the parallel bar in support of walking training, can be carried out in the walker walking training, training requirements with the previous step. 8, double axillary crutch support walking training and single axillary crutch support walking training: most patients after a period of walking training in the walker, can be transitioned to the use of axillary crutches walking degree.