Jackson Heights, NY–United Spinal Association now offers What Is SCI/D?, a new three page online pamphlet that is a general introduction to spinal cord injury and other disorders and diseases that affect the spinal cord.

Besides spinal cord injury, What Is SCI/D? provides general information about amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis (MS), post-polio, spina bifida, transverse myelitis, and syringomyelia. To download a copy of What Is SCI/D?, please go to http://www.unitedspinal.org/pdf/what_is_scid.pdf.

Slightly more than one million persons in the United States are living with these injuries and diseases. Approximately 250,000 individuals have a traumatic spinal cord injury while there are more than 400,000 persons with MS. There are about 200,000 post-polio survivors and at least 100,000 people who have battled syringomyelia. Some 70,000 Americans are living with spina bifida today and at any given time it is estimated that 30,000 individuals have ALS.

Paul J. Tobin, President and CEO of the United Spinal Association, stated that “what is a spinal cord injury or disorder is our most frequently-asked question, not just from individuals with these conditions but also from members of the public. A big part of our mission is education, so understanding your injury or disease is an important step for an individual in the rehabilitative process. But, knowledge about spinal cord injury and other conditions of the spine fosters prevention and acceptance among the general public.”