Spinal Cord Injury SCI

(Quadriplegia)

About Spinal Cord Injury and the Avery Diaphragm Pacing System

Quadriplegia, also known as Tetraplegia, is the loss of voluntary movement and sensation in all four extremities, and usually results from a cervical spinal cord injury (SCI). Other conditions, such as a Brain Stem Lesion or Spinal Meningitis, may also result in Quadriplegia.

The phrenic nerve originates at C3 through C5 and is the neurological pathway between the brain and the diaphragm. Injuries that occur at or above C4 can interrupt these pathways and render the patient dependent on ventilatory assistance. Immediately following injury, this assistance is provided by a mechanical ventilator. After the patient is neurologically and orthopedically stable and cannot be weaned from mechanical ventilation, an Avery Diaphragm Pacing System should be considered.

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Who is a Candidate for the Diaphragm Pacing System?

The Avery Diaphragm Pacing System can provide ventilatory support for patients with chronic respiratory insufficiency whose diaphragm, lungs, and phrenic nerves have residual function. Typically, these patients have high Spinal Cord Injuries, Central Sleep Apnea or other central neurological disorders or a paralyzed diaphragm.

See Diaphragm Pacing System Comparisons

How does the Avery Diaphragm Pacemaker compare to the competitor device for Spinal Cord Injury?

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Quadriplegia And The Need For Ventilatory Assistance

Quadriplegia is the loss of voluntary movement and sensation in all four extremities, and usually results from a cervical Spinal Cord Injury (SCI). Other conditions, such as a brain stem lesion or spinal meningitis, may also result in Quadriplegia which is also known as Tetraplegia.

An SCI can be complete or incomplete. The term incomplete indicates that the patient has some sensory or motor function below the injury level. There are seven cervical vertebrae and eight cervical nerves, identified as C1 through C8. The level of injury directly correlates to the patients abilities and needs.

• Patients with an injury or disease at C1, C2, and higher may have little or no movement of their head and neck, and may be entirely dependent on ventilatory assistance for breathing.
Spinal Cord Injury― 1. ―
• Patients with an injury at C3 usually have control of their head and neck and are occasionally weaned from ventilatory assistance.
Spinal Cord Injury― 2. ―
• Patients with an injury at C4 usually have control of their head and neck, some shoulder movement and are often weaned from ventilatory assistance.
Spinal Cord Injury― 3. ―
• Patients with injuries at C5 and lower have control of their head and neck, progressively more control of their arms and hands and are rarely in need of ventilatory assistance.
Spinal Cord Injury― 4. ―
• Patients with injuries below the cervical spine have full function in the upper extremities, which is classified as paraplegia. Paraplegics do not lose control of respiratory drive.
Spinal Cord Injury― 5. ―
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Improves
Quality of Life

•Small, portable, and silent, allowing for greater mobility and participation in social and educational activities.

•Shower, bathe, and participate in water therapy.

•Mechanical ventilation (MV) uses forced positive pressure (PPV) versus the Avery System which uses natural negative pressure (NPV) resulting in improved:

•Breathing and speech patterns.

•Eating, drinking, and sense of smell

•Circulatory function

The Avery Diaphragm Pacing System Reduces Risk

•Pacing reduces hospital readmissions due to the lower risk of infections including ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP).

•Fully implantable with no protruding wires which can result in chronic infection risk necessitating on-going wound management care.

Cost Savings

•Diaphragm pacing may for itself in less than a month by permitting discharge to a less costly environment.

•Covered by Medicare and most government and private insurance.

•Saves over $20,000 per year in ventilator-related expenses.

•Does not require the purchase of any specialized instrumentation or capital equipment.

•Avery provides technical support at no additional cost.

Safety
and Reliability

•50+ year unsurpassed record of safety and reliability.

•A dual redundant system ensuring no single-point failure results in complete loss of life support.

•A dual alarm system of audio and visual alerts.

•Circuitry that prevents direct current from being delivered to the nerve, which eliminates the possibility of nerve damage.

•Electrodes made up of 99.99% pure platinum for nerve contacts, which is superior to stainless steel.

Improves
Quality of Life

•Small, portable, and silent, allowing for greater mobility and participation in social and educational activities.

•Shower, bathe, and participate in water therapy.

•Mechanical ventilation (MV) uses forced positive pressure (PPV) versus the Avery System which uses natural negative pressure (NPV) resulting in improved:

•Breathing and speech patterns.

•Eating, drinking, and sense of smell

•Circulatory function

The Avery Diaphragm Pacing System Reduces Risk

•Pacing reduces hospital readmissions due to the lower risk of infections including ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP).

•Fully implantable with no protruding wires which can result in chronic infection risk necessitating on-going wound management care.

Cost Savings

•Diaphragm pacing may for itself in less than a month by permitting discharge to a less costly environment.

•Covered by Medicare and most government and private insurance.

•Saves over $20,000 per year in ventilator-related expenses.

•Does not require the purchase of any specialized instrumentation or capital equipment.

•Avery provides technical support at no additional cost.

Safety
and Reliability

•50+ year unsurpassed record of safety and reliability.

•A dual redundant system ensuring no single-point failure results in complete loss of life support.

•A dual alarm system of audio and visual alerts.

•Circuitry that prevents direct current from being delivered to the nerve, which eliminates the possibility of nerve damage.

•Electrodes made up of 99.99% pure platinum for nerve contacts, which is superior to stainless steel.

Advantages Over Mechanical Ventilation

Diaphragm Pacing is superior to Mechanical Ventilation (MV) because the inhaled air is drawn into the lungs by the diaphragm under negative pressure, rather than being forced into the chest under positive pressure. This is physiologically more accurate and comfortable for the patient. Pacing reduces hospital readmissions as the patient is at a much lower risk of upper airway infections including ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP).

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The Avery Success Stories

Read about our patient’s Central Sleep Apnea recovery stories with The Avery Diaphragm Pacemaker …

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Since 1987

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