Autonomic hyperreflexia

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Central nervous system

Prevention of autonomic hyperreflexia includes avoiding medications that cause this condition or make it worse. In people with spinal cord injury, the following may also help prevent this complication:

• Avoid letting the bladder become too full.
• Keep pain levels low.
• Practice proper bowel care to avoid stool impaction.
• Practice proper skin care to avoid bedsores and skin infections.

Khastgir J, Drake MJ, Abrams P. Recognition and effective management of autonomic dysreflexia in spinal cord injuries. Expert Opin Pharmacother. 2007;8:945-956.

Kirshblum SC, Priebe MM, Ho CH, Scelza WM, Chiodo AE, Wuermser LA. Spinal cord injury medicine: 3. Rehabilitation phase after acute spinal cord injury. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2007;88:S62-S70.

Review Date: 06/16/2010
Reviewed By: David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc., and Daniel B. Hoch, PhD, MD, Assistant Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org).

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