Paralysis

The partial or complete loss of voluntary muscle function, resulting from damage to the motor nervous system. Common causes include spinal cord injury, stroke, traumatic brain injury, motor neuron diseases such as ALS, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, and brainstem lesions producing locked-in syndrome. Paralysis can be localized (a single limb, hemiplegia, paraplegia) or extensive (tetraplegia, complete locked-in state) and may co-occur with anarthria, dysarthria, dysphagia, or respiratory dependence. Approximately 5 million people in the United States live with some form of paralysis, and accessibility responses span low-tech AAC boards, switch access, gaze-based computer control, robotic limbs, and emerging brain-computer interfaces.