Electromyographic assessment of damage to the injured spinal cord

Abstract

The possibility of assessing the degree of damage to the spinal cord by electromyography in the early stage of treatment was demonstrated. The following indices obtained during attempts at movement are evidence of the absence of anatomical loss of continuity of the spinal cord: 1) in the case of injury at level D₅–D₁₀, absence of delay in activation of the lower segments of the long muscles of the trunk compared with their upper segments; 2) in the case of trauma at the level D₁₀-L₁, the presence of activity in the thigh and leg muscles, even if recordable only as single potentials of low amplitude; 3) whatever the level of trauma, the appearance of activity in symmetrical muscles of one lower limb during the attempt to move the opposite limb. In most cases, even if only one index is positive, the patient's motor functions will be restored by restitution.