Topic 6e: Conditions in Specific Populations; Para Athletes

Question 1

where does “para” come from?

Answer 1

parallel

Question 2

true or false: agitos is the symbol for the paralympics

Answer 2

true

Question 3

how many summer sports are there in paralympics?

Answer 3

23

Question 4

in order to participate in the paralympics how many limbs need to be injured?

Answer 4

three

Question 5

what is classification in para atheletes?

Answer 5

• level of impairment or dysfunction that follows the amount of function of muscles that do and don’t work.
• given a class from 0.5-3.5 that are in increments of 0.5
• can only be up to 8 points on a court
• 0.5 is lowest functioning

Question 6

true or false: falling into the same classification three times in a row means you don’t have to be classified again

Answer 6

true

Question 7

what is a spinal cord injury (SCI)?

Answer 7

any sustained damage to the spinal cord, or the nerves at the end of the spinal canal.
- permanently impacts many physiological areas such as;
- sensation
- strength
- motor ability
- can be traumatic or non-traumatic
- complete or incomplete (some fibers still attached) spinal cord injury

Question 8

is it possible to injury your spinal cord without a spinal fracture?

Answer 8

yes.

Question 9

what happens when there is a cervical spine injury? (C1-C8)

Answer 9

• neck injury
• all four limbs and hands affected
• may not be able to breath on own (C3,4,5 affect breathing. higher than c4 would be on ventilatory)
• may affect speaking
• may affect bowel and bladder

Question 10

is it possible to have an injury in your sacral spine?

Answer 10

yes

Question 11

what are the causes of amputations?

Answer 11

• congenital (born with)
• acquired
  
  • traumatic injury = leading cause
  • diabetes
  • infection

Question 12

1. altered function = _____________
2. limited function = _____________

Answer 12

1. altered biomechanics
2. increased overuse injuries

Question 13

are para athletes at an increased risk of skin lesions and infections?

Answer 13

yes (lack of soft tissue mass)

Question 14

what is autonomic dysreflexia?

Answer 14

what the body of somebody with a spinal cord injury adapts to feel, to tell them that something is wrong
- BP spikes up very quickly
- sweating
- a pounding headache
- blurred vision
- nausea
- goose bumps
- slow heart rate

Question 15

if your injury is above what level will cause you not to sweat?

Answer 15

T6 (thoracic 6)

Question 16

what causes autonomic dysreflexia?

Answer 16

• bladder problems
• bowel or abdomen
• tight clothing or equipment
• musculoskeletal/skin
• sexual activity
• women’s reproductive system

Question 16

because athletes with a T6 or above injury cannot sweat, what happens?

Answer 16

• they cannot regulate their body temperatures
• they are at an increased risk of hyper and hypothermia