Brown-Séquard syndrome is a lesion of half the diameter of the spinal cord. Brown-Sequard syndrome - a serious blow to the spinal cord Brown-Sequard syndrome pathophysiology clinic diagnostics

Brown-Sekara Syndrome- a symptom complex observed with damage to half the diameter of the spinal cord: on the side of the lesion, central paralysis (or paresis) and loss of muscle-joint and vibration sensitivity are noted, on the opposite side - loss of pain and temperature sensitivity.

Code by international classification ICD-10 diseases:

The reasons

Etiology. Injuries and penetrating injuries of the spinal cord. Circulatory disorders of the spinal cord. Infectious and parainfectious myelopathy. Tumors of the spinal cord. Irradiation of the spinal cord. Multiple sclerosis(sclerosis).

Pathogenesis. Radicular and segmental disorders on the side of the injury. Conduction disturbances of the lesion level are lower.

Symptoms (signs)

Clinical picture. In the acute period - the phenomena of spinal shock (below the level of the lesion, complete flaccid paralysis and loss of all types of sensitivity are noted). Further developed: . Spastic paralysis (or paresis) and a disorder of deep sensitivity below the level of the lesion on the same side. On the opposite (healthy) side, there is a loss of pain and temperature sensitivity to the level of damage according to the conduction type. The development of flaccid paresis and segmental loss of sensitivity at the level of damage. Ataxia, paresthesia, radicular pain may occur.

Treatment

Treatment operational (decompression).

Synonyms. Hemiparaplegic syndrome. Half spinal cord syndrome

ICD-10. G83 Other paralytic syndromes

In which half of its diameter is affected, it is customary to call the Brown-Séquard syndrome. The pathological process is quite rare. Among diseases of the central nervous system it takes no more than 1-2%. The disease is named after the French neuropathologist and physiologist who first described the symptom complex at the end of the 19th century.

Classification

Violations in the area of ​​influence of an unfavorable factor cause focal and radicular symptoms

The syndrome in its classic version, studied by the neurologist Charles Brown-Séquard, is rare. Usually the disease proceeds according to an alternative variant that differs from the classical course. clinical manifestations. Depending on the symptoms of pathology, there are:

  • classic syndrome - the course of the disease is fully consistent with the traditional description;
  • inverted syndrome - classic symptoms appear on the opposite side of the body;
  • partial syndrome - some symptoms are absent or appear in areas of the body that do not correspond to the classical description.

Brown-Séquard syndrome can be caused by various adverse factors. Depending on the cause that influenced the onset of the disease, there are:

  • traumatic syndrome;
  • tumor syndrome;
  • hematogenous syndrome;
  • infectious-inflammatory syndrome.

Classification of the disease helps to correctly prescribe treatment and manage dispensary observation after the end of therapy.

The reasons

The disease causes damage to the neurons of one half of the diameter of the spinal cord. The other half continues to function normally, however, neurological symptoms may also appear in this area.

Lead to the development of pathology:

  • injuries of the spinal column with damage to the tissue of the spinal cord (traffic accidents, falling on the back from a height, stab and gunshot wounds in the spine);
  • tumors from the tissue of the spinal cord and bone structures of the spine of a benign or malignant nature (sarcomas, neurinomas, gliomas, meningiomas);
  • violation of blood flow through the spinal vessels (epidural hematoma, spinal hemangioma, spinal cord stroke);
  • infectious and inflammatory myelopathy;
  • multiple sclerosis;
  • abscesses, phlegmon in the spine;
  • contusion and radiation exposure of the spinal cord.


Location of sensory and motor pathways in the spinal cord

Typically, Brown-Séquard syndrome develops as a result of road accidents, penetrating knife and gunshot wounds, tumor formations in the spinal cord.

Clinical picture

The disease is a neurological symptom complex - a set of symptoms, the nature of which depends on the level of damage to the spinal cord and the amount of altered nervous tissue.

Often, not the entire half of the diameter of the spinal cord is involved in the pathological process, but only certain areas with predominant localization in the anterior or posterior horns.

The classical variant of the disease is manifested by a complex neurological symptoms.

On the affected side of the spinal cord:

  • below the level of damage to the nervous tissue, at the beginning of the disease, flaccid, and then spastic paralysis or paresis develops - increased muscle tone, which makes motor activity difficult and causes pain;
  • decrease in deep types of sensitivity - muscular-articular, vibrational, temperature, sensation of body weight;
  • vegetative-trophic disorders - vasodilation leads to reddening of skin areas, while the skin is cold to the touch, the formation trophic ulcers and bedsores.

On the healthy side of the spinal cord:

  • below the level of damage to the nervous tissue, superficial types of sensitivity decrease - tactile (touch) and pain;
  • at the level of damage to the nervous tissue, a partial loss of sensitivity is noted.

It should be remembered that below the level of compression (squeezing) of the spinal cord, neurological disorders occur according to the conduction type, and at the level of exposure to a traumatic factor, according to the radicular and segmental type.

A change in superficial types of sensitivity on the healthy side of the spinal cord occurs as a result of the crossing of sensory fibers of this type with their transition to the opposite side. At the same time, motor fibers and nerve pathways of deep sensitivity in the spinal cord do not cross.


The syndrome causes pain in the area of ​​damage, impaired motor functions and sensitive areas

The inverted variant of the disease differs from the classical manifestation of pathology.

  1. On the affected side, sensitivity is reduced or absent, mainly of the deep type.
  2. On the opposite side, motor disturbances occur in the form of paresis and paralysis, tactile, temperature sensitivity is reduced or absent, and the sensation of pain is disturbed.

The partial variant of the disease also has its own characteristics.

  1. Disturbances in motor activity on the side of spinal cord injury are observed along the front or back surface of the body.
  2. Lack of sensitivity develops in the same parts of the body where movement disorders appear.

The clinical manifestations of Brown-Séquard syndrome depend on the level of spinal cord injury. The higher the focus of the disease is located, the more parts of the body are subject to pathological changes. Thus, damage to the nervous tissue at the level of the cervical and first thoracic segments causes paralysis of the arms and legs of one half of the body, lack of sensitivity of these limbs and torso. Damage at the level of the lower thoracic and lumbar segments contributes to paralysis of the leg and impaired sensitivity of the lumbar region, buttocks, skin and muscles lower limb.

With a severe course of the disease and untimely therapy, complications develop:

  • pain syndrome of high intensity in the back, chronic headaches;
  • violation of the functioning of organs located in the small pelvis (constipation, impotence, incontinence of feces and urine);
  • hemorrhage in the tissue of the spinal cord;
  • functional rupture of the spinal cord;


Surgery is the only effective method disease therapy

Timely application for medical care prevents the progression of pathology and the development of undesirable consequences.

Diagnosis and treatment

Upon initial contact with medical institution the neuropathologist collects the patient's complaints, finds out when the symptoms of the disease appeared and identifies the factors that provoke the disease. The specialist examines the patient, checks neurological reflexes, assesses the degree of violation of sensitivity and motor activity of the affected part of the body. To confirm the diagnosis of Brown-Séquard syndrome, prescribe instrumental methods examinations.

  1. 1X-ray of the spine in frontal and lateral projection helps to detect defects of the vertebrae and suggest damage to the tissue of the spinal cord.
  2. 2 Computed tomography (CT) allows you to detect changes not only in bone tissue, but also in the anatomical structures of the spinal cord, blood vessels, muscles, and nerve roots.
  3. 3Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) – highly informative method with a layer-by-layer study of the area of ​​damage to the spinal cord and spinal column, the identification of disorders in bone structures and soft tissues.


Detection of compression of the spinal cord tissue during tomography

Treatment of the disease is carried out surgically. With the help of the operation, the compression of the spinal cord by bone fragments of the vertebrae, hematomas, abscesses, neoplasms is eliminated, and normal blood flow is restored in the area of ​​pathology. If necessary, plastic surgery of the spine is performed. AT recovery period prescribe physiotherapy (ultrasound, UHF, diadynamic currents) and physiotherapy exercises to normalize metabolic processes, activate blood circulation, strengthen the muscular frame of the back.

Brown-Séquard syndrome is a rare neurological disease caused by damage to one half of the spinal cord. The pathological process proceeds according to different clinical variants, which differ in neurological manifestations. The disease is far from always amenable to a complete cure, but with a timely operation, it is possible to prevent the development of complications and improve the quality of life.

Brown-Sequard syndrome is when there is a whole range of symptoms when half the diameter of the spinal cord is damaged.

The disease is provoked by numerous factors and is characterized by the presence of various clinical variations.

Elimination of pathology is impossible without surgical intervention.

Brown-Sequard syndrome and the mechanism of development

The study of factors that provoke damage to the central and peripheral nervous system, as well as the development effective methods treatment is carried out in the specialty of neurology. The CNS is known to be represented by the brain and spinal cord.

For one reason or another, Brown-Séquard syndrome occurs - a lesion of half the diameter of the spinal cord. This deviation is a rare phenomenon, the disease is found in 1-3% of cases among negative changes in the spinal cord.

For the first time, the pathology was able to be described in the 19th century by a physiologist and neurologist from France, Charles Edouard Brown-Séquard, in whose honor it was decided to name the syndrome. The symptom complex (lateral hemisection of the spinal cord) is equally diagnosed in both women and men.

Pathology is characterized by:

  • deterioration in motor activity;
  • sensitivity disorder.

According to doctors, in the advanced stage, the disease is incurable. But if the pathology is diagnosed at an early stage, and the necessary set of therapeutic measures is prescribed, it is possible to achieve a weakening of the manifestations and improve the patient's well-being.

Classification of this pathology

Brown-Sequard syndrome in the form in which it was originally studied is diagnosed in isolated cases.

Its variants are usually found:

  1. Classical. There are symptoms that are traditionally present in this disease.
  2. Inverted (reverse). The place of localization of signs is the opposite side of the body.
  3. Partial (incomplete). There are either no pathological manifestations, or they acquire a zonal expression, while they do not correspond to the traditional course at all.

There is another classification of hemisection of the spinal cord, created taking into account provoking factors:

  • traumatic option;
  • tumor variant;
  • infectious variant;
  • hematological option.

When one of the halves of the diameter is damaged, the other in terms of functioning remains quite viable. However, neurological symptoms are sometimes noted in this area.

The occurrence of manifestations on one and the other half of the body is explained by the structure of the spinal cord, that is, the crossing at different levels of the motor and sensory pathways of the spinal cord.

Thanks to the classification of the Brown-Sequard syndrome, doctors are able to select effective treatment methods, and at the end of the therapeutic course, systematically monitor the recovery of the patient, who must be registered with the dispensary.

Causes of the disease

Doctors identify a group of factors, the impact of which can result in the development of such a complex disease as Brown-Séquard syndrome.

Pathology can appear due to:

  1. mechanical injury. This factor is considered to be the leading one. Often, pathology becomes a consequence of an accident, falls from a height, injuries and other incidents due to which the spine suffers.
  2. The formation of a hematoma of various etiologies, which compresses the spinal cord.
  3. The formation of a neoplasm, it does not matter what character it has - benign or malignant. The syndrome can be triggered by sarcoma, glioma, neurinoma, meningioma.
  4. Myelopathy of an infectious or inflammatory nature.
  5. Violations of blood microcirculation in the arteries feeding the spinal cord.
  6. Multiple sclerosis.
  7. Concussions and radiation exposure spinal cord.
  8. Syringomyelia, characterized by the formation of cavities in the spinal cord.
  9. Abscesses, due to which the lumen of the spinal canal narrows.
  10. Epiduritis.
  11. Systemic sarcoidosis.

Symptoms of damage at different levels

The disease is characterized by the presence of common signs, noted both on the affected side and on the healthy side.

On the half where the lesion occurred, there are symptoms in the form of:

  • complete or partial paralysis;
  • reduction of sensitivity - muscular-articular, vibrational, temperature, pain;
  • loss of sensation of own weight;
  • temperature drop skin and their redness;
  • trophic disorders of various severity (ulcers, bedsores).

The other half, although it remains normal, but it also has some manifestations. The patient partially loses sensitivity at the level where the violation is present. Below this segment, pain and tactile susceptibility disappears.

With the development of the inverted type of symptom complex:

  • the damaged side loses skin sensitivity;
  • the healthy side suffers from the absence of voluntary movements and paresis below the damaged area, while there is a lack of susceptibility - pain, temperature and tactile.

You can recognize the partial type of the syndrome by:

  • problems with sensitivity and motor activity on the damaged side, and the disease affects only the back or front half of the body;
  • rarely no symptoms

Three factors can explain the differences in the course of the pathology:

The syndrome can occur at different levels of the spinal column, and the clinical picture is formed accordingly.

Pathology localization zone:

  1. 1-2 cervical vertebrae. In the affected half, the disease is manifested by absolute paralysis of the arm, a decrease in the sensitivity of the skin of the face, loss of skin and muscle susceptibility. On the opposite side, the lower limb becomes paralyzed and the sensitivity of the skin of the neck, lower face, and shoulders disappears.
  2. 3-4 cervical vertebrae. On the damaged side, the limbs undergo spastic paralysis, and the functioning of the diaphragmatic muscles is disrupted. On a healthy one, the susceptibility of the limbs decreases.
  3. 5 cervical - 1 thoracic vertebrae. On the affected side, the limbs lose their ability to move, and deep sensitivity disappears. On the other half of the body, superficial sensitivity disappears.
  4. Thoracic vertebrae from 2 to 7. On the side of the injury, the leg is paralyzed and tendon reflexes disappear. Also, the lower part of the body loses deep sensitivity. The cutaneous receptivity of the leg, gluteal and lumbar region disappears in the healthy half.
  5. The lumbar region and the first two sacral vertebrae. On the affected half, loss of motor functions and deep susceptibility of the lower limb. With a healthy one, skin sensitivity in the perineal region disappears.

The leading diagnostic indicator is the absence of disturbances in the functioning of the pelvic organs. Even if one side of the body is paralyzed, emptying Bladder and the bowel is preserved without deviations. This confirms the damage to the spinal cord of a unilateral nature.

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Basic diagnostic methods

After the patient went to the doctor with complaints of unpleasant manifestations, the latter begins the diagnosis by taking an anamnesis. Be sure to specify how much time has passed since the symptoms of the disease first manifested themselves. The severity of manifestations is also taken into account.

To detect paralysis, evaluate muscle tone and the nature of the pathology, the specialist uses a neurological hammer and a special needle. To explore superficial and deep sensitivity, the doctor uses various tests, and also uses a tuning fork and a set of weights.

Such an examination will make it possible to finally verify the presence of the Brown-Sequard syndrome and obtain reliable information about the segments in which it is localized.

Before the start of the treatment course, the patient is sent to undergo:

  • radiography, which contributes to the early detection of pathology;
  • computed tomography, which allows you to examine the condition of bones and muscles;
  • magnetic resonance imaging, a highly informative technique that makes it possible to thoroughly study injuries of the spine and spinal cord.

Effective treatment of the disease

How is Brown-Séquard syndrome treated? After receiving the examination data, the doctor draws up a treatment plan. It is important to understand that Brown-Sequard syndrome is a rather serious disease, and it can only be cured with the help of surgery.

If the operation is carried out late, complications are not excluded. The patient should go to the operating table as soon as possible after the diagnosis has been confirmed.

In the presence of a tumor process, hematoma or abscess, the formation is removed. Only after that the doctor is engaged in the restoration of the affected spinal column.


It is possible to improve the circulation of liquid tissue and the nutrition of the spinal cord with the help of:

  • antiplatelet agents;
  • anticoagulants;
  • vascular drugs;
  • drugs with neurotrophic action.

The swelling of the diseased area is weakened by the use of:

  • Furosemide;
  • Mannitol;
  • Glycerin;
  • Ethacrynic acid.

Sometimes corticosteroids are prescribed.

Patients with Brown-Sequard syndrome are treated in the neurological or neurosurgical department.

Effective patient rehabilitation

Patients with this symptom complex require a certain amount of time to recover after undergoing surgery.

For rehabilitation period shown:

  • performing special exercises;
  • undergoing physiotherapy procedures;
  • adherence to a well-designed diet;
  • calmness and avoidance of stress.

Exercise plays an important role physical therapy. Its effectiveness cannot be underestimated.

Thanks to LFK:

  1. Exchange processes are being established.
  2. Blood microcirculation is activated.
  3. The muscular frame is strengthened.

The doctor individually determines how many exercises should be performed and in what sequence. To achieve a speedy recovery, the patient needs physiotherapy.

Rehabilitation includes:

  • paraffin applications;
  • warming up with ozocerite;
  • electrophoresis using potassium iodide;
  • diadynamic currents;
  • ultrasound;
  • UHF therapy.

In the long term, patients often experience partial or complete neurological recovery.

What is the forecast

According to doctors, the prognosis for the syndrome is rather controversial. If a person strictly follows medical recommendations, further progression of the disease can be prevented. According to statistics, approximately 90% of patients move independently and are able to control the pelvic organs.

As such, there are no preventive measures, thanks to which it will be possible to avoid the development of pathology.

To minimize the risk of the syndrome, you must:

  • exercise caution while driving;
  • adhere to safety rules when working at height;
  • consult a doctor at the first signs of negative changes in the body.

Untimely treatment of pathology turns around:

  • intense pain in the back and head;
  • hematomyelia;
  • a disorder in the functioning of organs located in the small pelvis (the patient loses the ability to restrain urine and stool suffers from difficult bowel movements and erectile dysfunction);
  • final rupture of the spinal cord;
  • spinal shock (flaccid paralysis with lack of reflexes, loss of susceptibility of all types, weakening of the tone of the bladder walls with impaired urine outflow, and subsequently spastic paralysis).

Brown-Sequard syndrome is characterized by the presence of various clinical types accompanied by certain neurological disorders. Not all patients manage to fully recover, but the chances increase with the timely conduct of the necessary surgical procedures.

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Brown - Sekara syndrome (Ch.E. Brown-Sequard, French physiologist and, 1817-1894)

combination clinical symptoms, developing with damage to half the diameter of the spinal cord. On the side of the lesion, there are spastic, conduction disorders of the deep (muscle-articular feeling, vibration sensitivity (Sensitivity) , feelings of pressure, weight, kinesthesia) and complex (two-dimensional, discriminatory, feelings of localization) sensitivity, sometimes (Ataxia) . At the level of the affected segment, radicular pain and the appearance of a narrow zone of analgesia and termanesthesia are possible. On the opposite side of the body, there is a decrease or loss of pain and temperature sensitivity, and the upper level of these disorders is determined several segments below the level of spinal cord injury.

With damage at the level of the cervical or lumbar thickening of the spinal cord, peripheral or paralysis of the muscles innervated on the affected anterior horns of the spinal cord (peripheral motor neuron) develops.

Brown-Sequard syndrome occurs with syringomyelia (Syringomyelia) , tumors of the spinal cord, hematomyelia, ischemic disorders of the spinal circulation, injury, contusion of the spinal cord, epidural hematoma, epiduritis, multiple sclerosis (multiple sclerosis), etc.

True half of the spinal cord is rarely observed. Most often, only a part of half of the spinal cord is affected - a partial variant, in which in B.-S. With. some of its constituent features are missing.

In development clinical options B.-S. With. play the role of a pathological process in the spinal cord (intra- or extramedullary), its course and features, various afferent and efferent conductors of the spinal cord to compression and hypoxia, individual characteristics of spinal cord vascularization, etc. The syndrome has a topical and diagnostic value. Localization of the lesion in the spinal cord is determined by the level of violations of surface sensitivity.

Bibliography: Bogorodinsky D.K. and Skoromets A.A. Spinal cord infarctions, p. 146, L., 1973; Collins R.D. nervous diseases, from English, p. 118, M., 1986.


1. Small medical encyclopedia. - M.: Medical Encyclopedia. 1991-96 2. First aid. - M.: Great Russian Encyclopedia. 1994 3. Encyclopedic Dictionary medical terms. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. - 1982-1984.

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Brown-Sequard syndrome (lateral hemisection of the spinal cord) is a disease of the spinal column and spinal cord, which consists in the defeat of half the diameter of the spinal cord at one or another level of the spine.

The incidence of this pathology is about 1-3% of all diseases of the spinal cord. Men and women of different age categories suffer from this disease in equal proportions. It is not possible to completely cure the patient in all cases, however, it is possible to achieve relief and reduce symptoms with timely seeking medical help.

Classification

There are several variants of spinal cord injury in Brown-Séquard syndrome:

  • The classic version - all the symptoms correspond to the traditional description of the disease;
  • Inverted variant - all the symptoms characteristic of the classical course are distributed strictly on the opposite side of the patient's body;
  • Partial variant - the symptoms of the disease may be absent or expressed zonal, not corresponding to the classics.

Classification of Brown-Sequard syndrome based on the main causes of the pathology:

  • Traumatic;
  • tumor;
  • Infectious;
  • Hematological.

Causes

The most common causative factors leading to a half transverse disruption of the spinal cord:

  • Injuries of the spine and spinal cord (bruises, dislocations, fractures). The most common cause of this syndrome. These are road accidents, stab or gunshot wounds, falls from a height, and other factors that cause a fracture of the spine with displacement, and, as a result, damage to the spinal cord;
  • Tumor of the spine and spinal cord (both benign and malignant);
  • Myelopathy of an infectious and inflammatory nature;
  • Radiation damage to the spinal cord;
  • Circulatory disorders of the spinal cord (most common cause such a condition - spinal cord stroke, epidural hematoma);
  • spinal cord contusion;
  • Multiple sclerosis.

As a result of the action of the causative factor, the patient at the level of the lesion develops disorders of the segmental and radicular type, and on the opposite side (on the healthy side) - disorders of the conduction type.

Symptoms of Brown-Sequard Syndrome

The main classic symptoms of the development of a transverse half lesion of the spinal cord:

From the spinal cord injury:

  • Below the level of damage to the spinal cord, paralysis of the body is noted;
  • Loss of pain, temperature and tactile sensitivity;
  • The patient does not feel his body weight, vibrations and passive movements;
  • The skin is cold to the touch and red;
  • There are trophic disorders of varying degrees of severity (pressure sores, etc.).

On the healthy half of the body:

  • Below the level of spinal cord injury, tactile and pain sensitivity is absent;
  • At the level of spinal cord injury, no total loss sensitivity.

These signs and symptoms refer to the classic variant of the Brown-Séquard syndrome. However, there are other options for the course of this pathology.

Inverted variant the course of the syndrome:

  • There is no skin sensitivity on the side of the spinal injury;
  • On the healthy side, paralysis and paresis of the limbs and body below the injury site are noted;
  • On the healthy side, there are no pain, tactile and temperature sensitivities of the skin and muscle tissue.

Partial variant the course of the syndrome:

  • Disturbances of sensitivity and motor functions are noted on the side of the spinal cord injury only in the posterior or only in the anterior half of the body (i.e., a quarter of the body from the injury site and below);
  • In extremely rare cases, symptoms may not appear.

Such a difference in the course of the disease depends on the focus of the disease, the causative factor and the individual characteristics of the patient.

Based on the location of the focus of damage to the spinal cord, it is possible to distinguish the features of the symptoms:

  • Level 1-2 of the cervical segment (C1-C2): complete paralysis of the arm on the affected side and leg on the opposite side, decreased skin sensitivity on the face on the affected side, loss of skin and muscle sensitivity of the affected half of the body, loss of superficial skin sensitivity on the opposite side in the neck, lower half of the face, shoulder girdle.
  • Level 3-4 of the cervical segment (C3-C4): spastic paralysis of the limbs on the side of the injury, disruption of the diaphragmatic muscles on the side of the injury, impaired sensitivity of the limbs on the healthy half of the body.
  • Level 5 cervical - 1 thoracic segment (C5-Th1): paralysis of the limbs on the side of the injury, loss of deep sensitivity on the side of the lesion and superficial on the healthy side, the skin of the arm, neck and face on the side of the lesion is higher than in other parts of the body.
  • Level 2-7 of the thoracic segment (Th2-Th12): paralysis of the leg on the affected side, loss of tendon reflexes from the legs and deep sensitivity from the lower half of the body and leg, on the healthy side, loss of skin sensitivity of the leg, buttocks, lower back.
  • Level 1-5 of the lumbar and 1-2 sacral segment (L1-L5,S1-S2): on the side of the lesion, paralysis of the leg is noted, loss of deep sensitivity in the same place, on the opposite side, skin sensitivity of the perineum is lost.

Diagnostics

For the diagnosis of Brown-Sequard syndrome, an integrated approach is used:

  • Examination of the patient. The ability of a person to move and perform other movements in the limbs is determined.
  • Palpation. The surface sensitivity of the skin, the patient's reaction to passive movements in the joints of the extremities is determined.
  • Neurological examination. The doctor determines violations of tendon reflexes from the limbs, as well as the presence of pain, tactile and temperature sensitivity.
  • X-ray of the spine in two projections. Allows you to indirectly determine the damage to the spinal cord by examining the integrity of the spinal column.
  • CT (computed tomography) of the spine. Allows you to more accurately determine the location of spinal injury, displacement of fragments.
  • MRI (magnetic resonance imaging). The most accurate method for examining damage to the spinal cord, spine, blood vessels and nerves.

Treatment of Brown-Séquard syndrome

Brown-Sequard syndrome is treated exclusively promptly. Depending on the cause that led to the disease, the technique and course of the operation is selected. First of all, the doctor removes causal factor– removal of a tumor or hematoma, restoration of the integrity of the spine, suturing of the spinal cord and nerve endings, etc. If necessary, plastic surgery of the spine is performed.

After graduation postoperative period the patient begins rehabilitation - restores the ability to move by performing a series of exercise therapy exercises.

Complications

Among the complications of a transverse half lesion of the spinal cord, the most common ones can be distinguished:

Prevention

As such, prevention of the development of Brown-Séquard syndrome does not exist. However, we can highlight the observance of safety precautions that will help protect yourself from damage to the spine:

  • Comply with the rules of the road;
  • Comply with the rules of working at height;
  • Seek medical attention in a timely manner if any symptoms occur, do not self-medicate.