Transverse myelitis is a spinal cord inflammation, a significant part of the central nervous system.  The spinal cord carries nerve signals to and from the brain through nerves that extend from each side of the spinal cord and connect to nerves elsewhere in the body.  The term myelitis refers to inflammation of the spinal cord; transverse refers to the pattern of changes in sensation—there is often a band-like sensation across the body’s trunk, with sensory changes below.

Causes of transverse myelitis include infections, immune system disorders, and other disorders that may damage or destroy myelin, the fatty white insulating substance that covers nerve cell fibers.  Inflammation within the spinal cord interrupts communications between nerve fibers in the spinal cord and the rest of the body, affecting sensation and nerve signaling below the injury.  Symptoms include pain, sensory problems, weakness in the legs and possibly the arms, and bladder and bowel problems.  The symptoms may develop (over hours), days, or weeks suddenly.

TM is considered an orphan disease that receives little attention because it is not well-known, and unfortunately, there is no cure for it yet.

Myelitis  affects of all ages, genders, and races, with over 1,400 new cases diagnosed annually in the United States

Transverse myelitis is a condition where a section of the spinal cord becomes inflamed. While the exact cause is often unknown

Some people recover fully from transverse myelitis within a few months or years. But others might continue to have long-term problems.

Symptoms of transverse myelitis can worsen within hours after they start. Usually, they reach their peak within ten days. Around half of the people who suffer from this condition lose control of their legs at this stage. Additionally, most experience some degree of numbness, tingling, or a burning sensation in their back, belly, arms, or legs.

If you have been diagnosed with transverse myelitis, working closely with a physical therapist in an outpatient clinic may help you achieve your mobility goals and help you return to your previous level of function quickly and safely—National Organization for Rare Diseases.

Transverse myelitis is a “rare condition of the central nervous system involving spinal cord inflammation,” according to The Brain & Spine Foundation.
The word myelitis is made up of the Greek words for spinal cord and inflammation.This can interrupt the transmission of messages between the spinal cord nerves and the rest of the body.

Most people will experience muscle weakness, back pain, numbness, or changes in sensation.
The Brain & Spine Foundation explains: “Symptoms can rapidly progress to include bladder and bowel problems and paralysis.”
They state there is currently “no cure for transverse myelitis, but treatments and medical interventions are used to reduce the event’s severity, hasten recovery and relieve the symptoms and the after-effects.”

Approximately a third of people with transverse myelitis can expect to make only a limited recovery and are left with significant effects such as physical problems affecting their ability to walk, unusual sensations (paraesthesia), pain, fatigue, spasticity, and issues with their bladder and bowel.