RECOVERY FOLLOWING ISCHEMIC MYELOPATHY

Motor and sensory recovery were determined in five patients with ische mic myelopathy associated with traumatic laceration or surgical manipu lation of the thoracic aorta. The neurologic level of injury was betwe en T-2 and T-10. All patients had an anterior spinal artery pattern of incomplete spinal cord injury consisting of relatively greater loss o f motor function than sensation and preservation of sacral sensation. None of the three patients with zero lower extremity motor function at 30 days regained any motor function at 1 year. Two patients with part ial motor function 1 month after infarction had further motor recovery at 1 year. One of these two individuals was able to ambulate independ ently with a reciprocal gait using orthoses.