What are the symptoms of Brown-Séquard syndrome?

What are the symptoms of Brown-Séquard syndrome?

Symptoms of Brown-Séquard syndrome (BSS) usually appear after you experience spinal cord injury that causes damage on only one side of your spinal cord in a specific area anywhere along your spine.

The first symptoms of BSS are usually:

• Loss of voluntary motor function (muscle movement) on the same side of your body as the spinal cord damage below the level of the injury. This could present as weakness or paralysis.
• Loss of pain and temperature sensation on the other side of your body below the level of the injury.

For example, if someone had Brown-Séquard syndrome due to an injury that affected the right side of their spinal cord in their middle back, they would have a loss of muscle movement on the right side of their body from the middle of their back and down, which would affect their right hip, leg and foot. They would have a loss of pain and temperature sensation (but still have muscle control) on the left side of their body from their middle back and down. Their head, neck, shoulders and arms would be unaffected by the spinal cord damage and would function as they normally do.

BSS can also cause the following symptoms:

• Loss of bladder and bowel control (urinary and fecal incontinence).
• Weakness and muscle atrophy in the affected area.

The symptoms of BSS can vary from mild to severe. They generally improve with proper treatment of BSS.