Which spinal condition is described as a temporary concussion-like disruption of spinal cord function below the level of injury?

• A. Central cord syndrome
• B. Spinal shock
• C. Anterior cord syndrome
• D. Brown-Sequard syndrome

Answer: (B)

Spinal shock describes a temporary concussion-like disruption of spinal cord function below the level of injury. Right after trauma, the nerves below the injury aren’t functioning normally, so you see flaccid paralysis, loss of reflexes, and diminished sensation below the injury, sometimes with bladder and bowel dysfunction. This state is temporary: over hours to days (and sometimes weeks) the reflexes begin to return as the shock resolves, though the patient may still have lasting deficits from the actual injury.

This description is the best fit because it emphasizes that the disturbance below the injury is not permanent and is a transient loss of function, rather than a fixed pattern of deficits. Other spinal syndromes describe specific, lasting deficits from damage to particular tracts (for example, central cord syndrome with more weakness in the arms, anterior cord syndrome with loss of motor and pain/temperature but preserved light touch and proprioception, Brown-Sequard with ipsilateral motor loss and vibration loss plus contralateral pain/temperature loss).