by
David F. Dean
Department of Biology
Spring Hill College
The spinal cord carries messages between the brain and the rest of the body. Traumatic injury to the spinal cord can result in a condition called acute spinal cord injury (SCI), resulting in motor, sensory, or autonomic dysfunction which may be temporary or permanent. SCI is a common cause of permanent disability and death in both children and adults.
Before attempting to answer the questions associated with this case, students should review the functional anatomy of the spinal cord as well as the normal physiology of spinal reflexes.
Upon completion of the case study, students will have learned:
This case study has been used in both a sophomore-level course in human anatomy and physiology and a senior-level course in general physiology.
Students are given a printed copy of the case at least one week prior to the class in which the case will be discussed. They are told which concepts to review before attempting to answer the questions and that reference materials are available in the college library for their use. I ask the students to do their best to complete the questions before the class discussion of the case and encourage them to collaborate with one another. Students are not required to hand in written answers to the questions, but, rather, are called upon at random to answer the questions during the class discussion. Questions from the case study are included on regularly scheduled course examinations. I tell students at the beginning of the term that the more effort they put into each case, the more they will learn, the more fun they will have, and the better they will perform on the examinations.
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Acknowledgements: This case was developed with support from the National Science Foundation under CCLI Award #0341279. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
Image Credit: Detail of The Injured Mason by Francisco de Goya, 1786–87. Oil on canvas. Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain.
Date Posted: 12/02/05 nas
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Originally published at http://www.sciencecases.org/spinal_cord/spinal_cord_notes.asp
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