Ambulation in Dogs With Absent Pain Perception After Acute Thoracolumbar Spinal Cord Injury.

ABSTRACT: Acute thoracolumbar spinal cord injury (SCI) is common in dogs frequently secondary to intervertebral disc herniation. Following severe injury, some dogs never regain sensory function to the pelvic limbs or tail and are designated chronically "deep pain negative." Despite this, a subset of these dogs develop spontaneous motor recovery over time including some that recover sufficient function in their pelvic limbs to walk independently without assistance or weight support. This type of ambulation is commonly known as "spinal walking" and can take up to a year or more to develop. This review provides a comparative overview of locomotion and explores the physiology of locomotor recovery after severe SCI in dogs. We discuss the mechanisms by which post-injury plasticity and coordination betwee

SUBMITTER: Lewis MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7479830 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature