Spinal cord injury physical activity and quality of life

Aims. - 1- To demonstrate the pertinence of regular physical activity practice from a physiological point of view and -2, to formulate recommendations for physical activities that are accessible to persons with a spinal cord injury. Current knowledge. - Traumatic spinal cord lesions generally affect young and healthy people. Approximately 80% of the spinal cord lesions are the consequence of road or work accidents, while some 20% result from medical causes. The most obvious outcome is the loss of motor control in body regions below the lesion level, but the person also encounters sensitivity problems in those body parts, as well as disturbances of the autonomic nervous system. Currently the aim of rehabilitation following the acute post-traumatic phase reaches far beyond the mere survival of the patient and his/her discharge from hospital. Modem rehabilitative intervention seeks to optimise the person's physical and psychological potential, to maximise functional independence and thus to facilitate familial, social and socioeconomical reintegration. In short, the objective is to develop the patient's quality of life into an acceptable standard. Many persons with a spinal cord injury state that regular physical activity represents an effective means to contribute to their functional independence and quality of life. Increasingly numerous studies tend to validate scientifically this point of view. (c) 2006 Elsevier SAS. Tous droits reserves.