Question
My brother suffered a fall and as a result has a soft tissue spinal cord injury from C2 through C5.  No fracture.  A few days after being put on the ventilator he was having some movement in his upper arms and could move them on command.  For the past three days, he has no movement at all in his upper extremities.  Is there a reason for this and what are the chances of this movement returning.  They are going to trach him today and the neurosurgeon also started him on Decadron for swelling.  We are being told he will definitely be quadriplegic even if he has gross motor movement in this arms - what does that mean?

Answer
Spinal cord swelling can cause a greater loss of movement and function in the beginning of the injury. Return of function may take months as the swelling subsides.

Quadriplegic means that he will not have full functional use of his hands although his arms can move. It also means that his legs are affected by the injury.  Quad means four so quadriplegia means that all four limbs are involved.

Thank you for your question, Melissa.  I hope that my answer was helpful.  Please feel free to ask more questions as they come up.