Hypothermia associated with autonomic dysreflexia after traumatic spinal cord injury

Individuals with traumatic upper thoracic and cervical spinal cord injuries are at increased risk for the development of both thermoregulatory dysfunction and autonomic dysreflexia. It is unclear, however, what effect reflex autonomic sympathetic outflow has on thermoregulatory dysfunction during episodes of autonomic dysreflexia. The following case of an individual with C5 tetraplegia and both thermoregulatory dysfunction and autonomic dysreflexia illustrates the profound effects that the autonomic nervous system may have on body temperature in individuals at risk for this complication.