Spinal Cord Injury Care

Our expert team provides immediate and advanced care for spinal cord injuries.

Spinal Cord Injury Care

Our expert team provides immediate and advanced care for spinal cord injuries.

Advanced Care for Spinal Cord Injury Symptoms

Your spinal cord is made up of nerves that connect your brain to the rest of your body. Spinal nerves control everything from involuntary movements, like breathing and blinking, to voluntary movements, like walking and talking. A spinal cord injury can involve damage to your spinal nerves, vertebrae (spine bones), discs (the cushioning between vertebrae) or ligaments (bands that hold the vertebrae together and support your spine).  

Different types of spinal cord injuries can occur. A traumatic spinal cord injury may result from a car crash or hard hit to your back. Or, you can have a nontraumatic spinal cord injury from conditions like cancer, degenerative disc disease, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.  

Spinal cord injury symptoms depend on the location of the spine injury. Your symptoms also depend on spinal cord injury levels or severity. 

  • A complete spinal injury means you can’t feel or move any part of your body below the injury.  
  • An incomplete spinal injury is when you have some feeling or ability to move parts of your body below the injury. 

Back and neck injuries can be serious, so it’s important to get medical attention right away to prevent paralysis or other serious problems. Spine injury treatment requires emergency care from a team of specialists to protect your spine and keep you safe. Your treatment may include braces and devices to support your spine, medicines, surgery and other therapies. Also, you’ll work with our rehabilitation team to learn how to manage symptoms or physical limitations so you can live as independently as possible. 

Our Integrated Approach to Spine Care

Leading-edge Spinal Cord Injury Treatment

As an academic health center, we’re at the forefront of spinal cord injury treatments, including promising new advancements through clinical trials.

You receive complete care from a team of specialists in emergency medicine, spine care, neurology, neurocritical care, neuropsychology and rehabilitation.

We offer individual attention and support every step of the way — from providing emergency treatment in the hospital to helping you learn new skills so you can return to activities you enjoy.

We’re recognized as a Blue Distinction Center by Blue Cross Blue Shield for providing quality spine surgery care.

We offer one-on-one guidance from specialists who help you live as independently as possible, including physiatrists (rehabilitation doctors), physical and occupational therapists, rehabilitation psychologists, social workers, rehabilitation nurses and dietitians.

Ram Kiran Alluri, MD

Accepting new patients
Assistant Professor of Clinical Orthopaedic Surgery
Specialties
Spine Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery

Thomas C. Chen, MD, PhD

Accepting new patients
Professor of Neurological Surgery
Specialties
Neurosurgery, Spine Surgery, Brain Tumor  View more

Raymond J. Hah, MD

Accepting new patients
Associate Professor of Clinical Orthopaedic Surgery
Specialties
Spine Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery

Patrick C. Hsieh, MD

Accepting new patients
Professor of Clinical Neurological Surgery
Specialties
Neurosurgery, Spine Surgery

John C. Liu, MD

Accepting new patients
Professor of Neurosurgery
Specialties
Neurosurgery, Spine Surgery

Christopher C. Ornelas, MD

Accepting new patients
Chief of Spine Medicine, Director of USC Spine Medicine Serv …
Specialties
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Orthopedic Surgery, Pain Medicine  View more

Michael Safaee, MD

Accepting new patients
Assistant Professor Of Clinical Neurological Surgery
Specialties
Neurosurgery, Spine Surgery

Mark J. Spoonamore, MD

Accepting new patients
Associate Professor of Clinical Orthopaedic Surgery
Specialties
Spine Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery

Gene Tekmyster, DO

Accepting new patients
Assistant Professor of Clinical Orthopaedic Surgery
Specialties
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Sports Medicine, Interventional Spine and Musculoskeletal Medicine  View more

Jeffrey C. Wang, MD

Accepting new patients
Professor of Clinical Orthopaedic Surgery and Neurosurgery ( …
Specialties
Spine Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery

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