The 5 signs of autonomic dysreflexia are flushing and sweating above the level of the injury, a sudden, severe headache, nasal congestion, changes in vision and a slow heart rate.
Autonomic dysreflexia is a condition that is dangerous and affects people that have spinal cord injuries that are above the T5 vertebra.
Autonomic dysreflexia is a sudden and uncontrolled over activity of your sympathetic nervous system, which results in a dangerous spike in your blood pressure and it happens because of the communication between your brain and your body below the level of the injury is disrupted, which causes your body to overreact to stimuli.
People who are at risk of autonomic dysreflexia are people that have spinal cord injuries that are at or above the T6 level.
Autonomic dysreflexia is triggered by a stimulus below the level of the injury, like as a full bladder, bowel impaction or even skin irritation.
The stimulus is what sends a signal to your spinal cord, but it can't reach your brain due to the injury, which leads to a massive and uncontrolled sympathetic response, that causes widespread vasoconstriction and a rapid rise in your blood pressure.
Autonomic dysreflexia can range from mild to life threatening.
An unopposed parasympathetic response is what happens when your parasympathetic nervous system's activity is not balanced by the sympathetic nervous system, which results in a dominance of the parasympathetic effects.
Some reasons that this can occur is due to spinal cord injuries above T6, which disrupts the sympathetic pathways or even certain medications which affect your autonomic nervous system balance.
Your parasympathetic nervous system is activated when your body is at rest and promotes functions such as reducing heart rate and digestion.
The parasympathetic nervous system does not directly elicit emotions, but it does support feelings of contentment and well being.
A sense of safety and relaxation is what triggers a parasympathetic response, which counteracts the fight or flight response of your sympathetic nervous system.
The sense of safety and relaxation that triggers the parasympathetic response can be induced by several different stimuli which include mind body practices like yoga and meditation, spending time out in nature, positive emotions and even deep and slow breathing.
A parasympathetic response is part of your autonomic nervous system and is responsible for your body's "rest and digest" response and promotes relaxation and conserving of energy.
The parasympathetic response counteracts the sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for your fight or flight response.
Your parasympathetic nervous system helps to reduce your heart rate and blood pressure and promotes a sense of calm and it also stimulates digestive processes, including salivation, stomach acid production and bowel movements as well as causes your pupils to constrict and reduce light sensitivity.
The parasympathetic nervous system also stimulates saliva production, which increases saliva that helps with digestion and swallowing of food and it also facilitates the emptying of your bladder and bowels.
Your parasympathetic nervous system uses specific nerve pathways, which include your vagus nerve, to communicate with various organs and tissues and it primarily uses acetylcholine as it's neurotransmitter to transmit signals.
The symptoms of autonomic hyperactivity include rapid heart rate, elevated blood pressure, increased body temperature, pupillary dilation and excessive sweating.
Autonomic hyperactivity can also cause motor disturbances such as muscle spasms, dystonia, and posturing.
Triggers of autonomic hyperactivity include infection, pain and routine care procedures.
Autonomic hyperactivity can also occur with a traumatic brain injury or even a spinal cord injury or Guillain Barre syndrome and even can be a result of neuroleptic malignant syndrome or serotonin syndrome.
Autonomic hyperactivity is also known as dysautonomia and is a condition in which your autonomic nervous system, especially the sympathetic branch, becomes excessively active.
Dysautonomia is not an autoimmune disease although it can be caused by or associated with some autoimmune diseases and conditions.
Some forms of dysautonomia are primary, which means they occur on their own without a clear cause and other causes of dysautonomia are secondary, which means they develop as a result of another condition, including autoimmune diseases.
Dysautonomia is a condition that is caused by the malfunction of your autonomic nervous system, which is what regulates your involuntary bodily functions such as blood pressure, digestion and heart rate.
Dysautonomia is an umbrella term that describes a group of disorders and symptoms can range from mild to severe enough to be debilitating.
The autonomic nervous system is what controls breathing and regulates the rhythm and depth of our breathing.
The autonomic nervous system also controls heart rate and adjusts the speed at which the heart beats and also maintains appropriate blood pressure levels.
The autonomic nervous system also controls the process of digestion by controlling the process of breaking down of food and absorbing nutrients.
The autonomic nervous system also maintains a stable body temperature and regulates the body's temperature.
Other functions that the autonomic nervous system controls are the bladder as well as pupil response and sweating.
Dysautonomia can manifest itself in a wide range of different symptoms that can vary greatly between people.
Common symptoms of dysautonomia include orthostatic intolerance such as dizziness, lightheadedness or fainting when standing up, heart rate and blood pressure issues like abnormal heart rate, palpitations and fluctuating blood pressure, gastrointestinal issues such as vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, constipation and abdominal pain.
Other symptoms of dysautonomia are sweating abnormalities like excessive sweating or an inability to sweat and vision problems like difficulty adjusting to light changes or even blurred vision, fatigue and exercise intolerance such as feeling unusually tired and struggling with physical activity and other symptoms like anxiety, sleep disturbances, headaches and difficulty swallowing.
The causes of dysautonomia are genetics, autoimmune diseases, infections such as viral or bacterial infections, diabetes, Parkinson's disease, certain neurological conditions etc can lead to dysautonomia.