The amount of compensatory sweating depends on the patient, the damage that the white rami communicans incurs, and the amount of cell body reorganization in the spinal cord after surgery.
Other potential complications include inadequate resection of the ganglia, gustatory sweating, pneumothorax, cardiac dysfunction, post-operative pain, and finally Horner’s syndrome secondary to resection of the stellate ganglion.
www.ubcmj.com/pdf/ubcmj_2_1_2010_24-29.pdf

After severing the cervical sympathetic trunk, the cells of the cervical sympathetic ganglion undergo transneuronic degeneration
After severing the sympathetic trunk, the cells of its origin undergo complete disintegration within a year.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1439-0442.1967.tb00255.x/abstract

Sunday, November 30, 2008

Autonomic dysreflexia

Autonomic dysreflexia is a potentially life-threatening complication in these patients. This disorder represents an autonomic response, which is primarily sympathetic, to specific visceral stimuli in patients with spinal cord injury above the level of T6. An incomplete compensatory parasympathetic outflow will occur above the level of injury. This phenomena is more common in patients with cervical injuries, and common triggers include bowel and bladder distention. Symptoms may involve piloerection, diaphoresis, pounding headache, flushing above the level of the injury, and may be associated with sudden and severe hypertension accompanied by reflex bradycardia. Although bradycardia is most common, tachycardia and arrhythmias may be present. Hypertension may be of varying severity from causing a mild headache to a seixure or life-threatening cerebral hemorrhage.

Voiding Dysfunction

By Rodney A. Appell
Published by Humana Press, 2000