Spinal cord injury (SCI) occurs when the nerves within the spinal canal are damaged. Most SCI’s are caused by trauma to the vertebral column, affecting the spinal cord’s ability to send and receive messages between the brain and the body’s systems that control sensory, motor and autonomic function.

Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of SCI, followed by acts of violence, falls, sports injuries and diseases such as polio, spina bifida and Friedreich’s Ataxia.

The spinal cord does not have to be severed in order for a loss of functioning to occur.  In fact, in most people with SCI, the spinal cord is intact, but the damage to it results in loss of functioning.