The site of your injury will determine what parts of your body are paralyzed. The higher the injury, the more body parts that are affected. For instance, a spinal cord injury in the upper, or cervical, region of your spine will affect your arms as well as your trunk, legs and pelvic area (including bowel and bladder). Someone with this level of injury is considered to be quadriplegic. But an injury lower down, in the thoracic or lumbar region, won’t affect your arms. Someone with a spinal cord injury in either of these regions is considered to be paraplegic. About half of all people with SCI are quadriplegic, and half are paraplegic.
