A congenital disorder is diastematomyelia in which part of the<unk>  is split usually at the level of the upper lumbar vertebrae. Sometimes the split can be along the length of the<unk> . Injury<unk>  injuries can be caused by trauma to the<unk>  column (stretching, bruising, applying pressure, severing, laceration, etc.). The vertebral bones or intervertebral disks can shatter, causing the<unk>  to be punctured by a sharp fragment of bone. Usually, victims of<unk>  injuries will suffer loss of feeling in certain parts of their body. In milder cases, a victim might only suffer loss of hand or foot function. More severe injuries may result in paraplegia, tetraplegia (also known as quadriplegia), or full body paralysis below the site of injury to the<unk> . Damage to upper motor neuron axons in the<unk>  results in a characteristic pattern of ipsilateral deficits. These include hyperreflexia, hypertonia and muscle weakness. Lower motor neuronal damage results in its own characteristic pattern of deficits. Rather than an entire side of deficits, there is a pattern relating to the myotome affected by the damage. Additionally, lower motor neurons are characterized by muscle weakness, hypotonia, hyporeflexia and muscle atrophy.<unk>  shock and neurogenic shock can occur from a<unk>  injury.<unk>  shock is usually temporary, lasting only for 24–48 hours, and is a temporary absence of sensory and motor functions. Neurogenic shock lasts for weeks and can lead to a loss of muscle tone due to disuse of the muscles below the injured site. The two areas of the<unk>  most commonly injured are the cervical spine (C1–C7) and the lumbar spine (L1–L5). (The notation C1, C7, L1, L5 refer to the location of a specific vertebra in either the cervical, thoracic, or lumbar region of the spine.)<unk>  injury can also be non-traumatic and caused by disease (transverse myelitis, polio,<unk> bifida, Friedreich's ataxia,<unk>  tumor,<unk>  stenosis etc.) Globally, it is expected there are around 40 to 80 cases of<unk>  injury per million population, and approximately 90% of these cases result from traumatic events. Real or suspected<unk>  injuries need immediate immobilisation including that of the head.<unk> ans will be needed to assess the injury. A steroid, methylprednisolone, can be of help as can physical therapy and possibly antioxidants. Treatments need to focus on limiting post-injury cell death, promoting cell regeneration, and replacing lost cells. Regeneration is facilitated by maintaining electric transmission in neural elements. Stenosis<unk>  stenosis at the lumbar region are usually due to disc herniation, hypertrophy of the facet joint and ligamentum flavum, osteophyte, and spondylolisthesis. Uncommon cause of lumbar<unk>  stenosis is due to<unk>  epidural lipomatosis, a condition where there is excessive deposit of fat in the epidural space, causing compression of nerve root and<unk> . The epidural fat can be seen as low density on CT<unk> an and high intensity on T2-weighted fast spin echo MRI images. Tumours<unk>  tumours can occur in the<unk>  and these can be either inside (intradural) or outside (extradural) the dura mater. Procedures The<unk>  ends at the level of vertebrae L1–L2, while the subarachnoid space —the compartment that contains cerebrospinal fluid— extends down to the lower border of S2. Lumbar punctures in adults are usually performed between L3–L5 (cauda equina level) in order to avoid damage to the<unk> . In the fetus, the<unk>  extends the full length of the spine and regresses as the body grows.
Spinal cord
Brainstem
Retina
Forebrain
Hindbrain
Brain
Central nervous system
Sensory cortex