Spinal cord emergency
NCLEX-RN glossary · Physiological Adaptation
Definition
Acute complications of spinal cord injury, specifically focusing on autonomic dysreflexia and neurogenic shock triggers.
Spinal cord emergency in plain English
The nurse must identify triggers such as bladder distension or fecal impaction to prevent life-threatening hypertensive crises in autonomic dysreflexia. A frequent error is failure to prioritize the removal of a noxious stimulus (like a kinked catheter) as the first-line intervention in autonomic dysreflexia.
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