![]() ![]() Bacterial skin infections, middle-ear infections, campylobacter jejuni gastroenteritis, and mycoplasma bacterial pneumonia have also been associated with transverse myelitis. Bacterial infections such as syphilis, tuberculosis, actinomyces, pertussis, tetanus, diphtheria, and Lyme disease.It is often difficult to know whether direct viral infection or a post-infectious response causes the transverse myelitis. Viral infections including herpes viruses such as varicella zoster (the virus that causes chickenpox and shingles), herpes simplex, cytomegalovirus, and Epstein-Barr flaviviruses such as West Nile and Zika influenza, echovirus, hepatitis B, mumps, measles, and rubella.Other antibody-mediated conditions that are still being discovered.An abnormal immune response to an underlying cancer that damages the nervous system.Post-infectious or post-vaccine autoimmune phenomenon, in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks the body's own tissue while responding to the infection or, less commonly, a vaccine.An antibody is a protein that binds to foreign substances that can attack the host organism. Aquaporin-4 is a channel on the cell membrane that lets water enter the cell and helps maintain the chemical balance so that the central nervous system will work correctly. Aquaporin-4 autoantibody associated neuromyelitis optica, a disorder that affects the eye nerves and spinal cord.Multiple sclerosis (SMS), a disorder in which immune system cells that normally protect us from viruses, bacteria, and unhealthy cells mistakenly attack the protective coating of myelin in the brain, optic nerves, and spinal cord.Immune system disorders appear to play an important role in causing damage to the spinal cord.The following conditions appear to cause transverse myelitis: The disorder occurs most frequently in people who are either between ages 10 and 19 years old or between 30 and 39 years old. It does not appear to be genetic or to run in families. Transverse myelitis can affect people of any age, gender, or race. Who is more likely to get transverse myelitis? Other symptoms may include sexual dysfunction, depression or anxiety caused by lifestyle changes, stress, and chronic pain. Many people also report having muscle spasms, a general feeling of discomfort, headache, fever, and loss of appetite, while some people experience respiratory problems. Bowel and bladder dysfunction-Common symptoms include an increased frequency or urge to use the toilet, incontinence, and constipation.Abnormal sensations in the torso and genital region are common. Sensory alterations-Transverse myelitis can cause paresthesias (abnormal sensations such as burning, tickling, pricking, numbness, coldness, or tingling) in the legs, and sensory loss.Pain-Initial symptoms usually include lower back pain or sharp, shooting sensations that radiate down the legs or arms or around the torso.People may develop paraparesis (partial paralysis of the legs) that may progress to paraplegia (complete paralysis of the legs), requiring the person to use a wheelchair. If the myelitis affects the upper spinal cord, it affects the arms as well. Weakness of the legs and arms-People with transverse myelitis may have weakness in the legs that progresses rapidly.Transverse myelitis may be either acute (developing over hours to several days) or subacute (usually developing over one to four weeks).įour classic features of transverse myelitis are: Some people will have only one episode of transverse myelitis, but others may have a recurrence, especially if an underlying illness caused the disorder. Other people may have permanent impairments that affect their ability to perform ordinary tasks of daily living. Most people with transverse myelitis have at least partial recovery, with most recovery taking place within the first three months after the attack. In people with transverse myelitis, myelin damage most often occurs in nerves in the upper back.Īlthough some people recover from transverse myelitis with minor or no residual problems, the healing process may take months to years. Damage at one segment will affect function at that level and below. ![]() The segment of the spinal cord at which the damage occurs determines which parts of the body are affected. Transverse refers to the pattern of changes in sensation-there is often a band-like sensation across the trunk of the body, with sensory changes below that area. It can damage the insulating material, called myelin, that covers nerve cell fibers. Myelitis refers to inflammation of the spinal cord. The spinal cord also carries sensory information back to the brain. Transverse myelitis is a neurological disorder caused by inflammation of the spinal cord, the part of the central nervous system that sends impulses from the brain to nerves in the body. ![]()
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