Your central hub for information, support tools, and practical advice.

We have a wealth of knowledge to share with you about living with a spinal cord injury (SCI), and have pulled this together in this section to help you access the information you need, when you need it.

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Autonomic Dysreflexia (AD) is a potentially life-threatening medical condition many individuals with spinal cord injury experience.

Causes of Autonomic Dysreflexia in SCI

It emerges after a spinal cord injury, usually when the damage has occurred at or above the sixth thoracic vertebral level (T6). Furthermore, the higher level of spinal cord injury brings us a more complete and higher risk of developing AD.

Symptoms

Autonomic Dysreflexia (AD) causes an uncoordinated autonomic response, leading to potentially life-threatening hypertension. Meanwhile, as a syndrome, it accompanies with:

High blood pressure
Pounding headache
Flushed face
Sweating above the level of injury
Goose flesh below the level of injury
Nasal stuffiness
Nausea
A slow pulse (slower than 60 beats per minute)
More

Autonomic Dysreflexia is considered a medical emergency, so it must be recognized immediately. Moreover, complications associated with AD result directly from sustained, severe peripheral hypertension. Therefore, if left untreated, AD can cause seizures, retinal hemorrhage, pulmonary edema, renal insufficiency, myocardial infarction, cerebral hemorrhage, and death. Autonomic Dysreflexia in Spinal Cord Injury

Prevention

In people with spinal cord injury, the following methods may help prevent AD.

Do not let the bladder become too full
Control pain
Practice proper bowel care to avoid stool impaction
Practice good skin care to avoid bedsores and skin infections
Prevent bladder infections.

More importantly, you need to work with your doctor to identify the symptoms and take precautionary steps. Moreover, we have built up a factsheet for Autonomic Dysreflexia where you can get more information about it.