Abdominal binder: Fitted elastic fabric that goes around the abdomen to support abdominal muscles and trunk stability, while improve breathing and circulation.
Acute Hospital: A facility where initial care and medical stabilization takes place. Any necessary surgeries will take place in acute hospitals.
Bladder: This hollow organ stores urine. When the bladder muscle is weak or can’t fully contract to empty the bladder, it can cause serious issues in someone with a spinal cord injury so a catheter may be needed to empty the bladder.
Blister: A fluid-filled sac between the first and second layer of skin. Some blisters may go away on their own. Others may need to be opened by the team during wound care.
Bowel: The long, tube-shaped organ in the abdomen that completes the process of digestion.
Care conference: A team meeting, including caregivers, to discuss progress, concerns and to prepare for your child to go home.
Catheter: A flexible tube inserted into the bladder to remove urine.
Constipation: A condition in which there is difficulty in emptying the bowels or passing stools. This can cause serious issues for children with spinal cord injury.
Feeding tube: A tube placed through the nose into the stomach to give nutrition, fluids, or medicine. May also be called a nasogastric tube or “ng tube.”
Functional loss: The inability to perform an activity that a child could do before injury.
Motor function: The body’s ability to move and coordinate voluntary actions and movements, such as raising your arm or lifting your leg.
Muscle atrophy: The loss of muscle mass and strength in muscles due to spinal cord injury.
Range of motion: The extent of movement of a joint. Stretching to achieve full range of motion isan important part of recovery.
Regulating body temperature: The body’s ability to maintain a normal temperature.
Sensory function: Sensations of touch, pressure, temperature and pain.
Spasticity: Abnormal muscle tightness due to prolonged muscle contraction associated withdamage to the spinal cord.
“I still think about how Ranken Jordan changed my life.”
— Kiland Sampa, Inpatient Jul-Nov 2013, Outpatient Dec 2013-Dec 2014
