ASIA/ISCoS Exam and Grade
This is a system of tests used to define and describe the extent and severity of a patient’s spinal cord injury and help determine future rehabilitation and recovery needs. It is ideally completed within 72 hours after the initial injury. The patient’s grade is based on how much sensation he or she can feel at multiple points on the body, as well as tests of motor function.
ASIA/ISCoS Exam Chart (ASIA Impairment Scale)
Grade A
Complete lack of motor and sensory function below the level of injury (including the anal area)
Grade B
Some sensation below the level of the injury (including anal sensation)
Grade C
Some muscle movement is spared below the level
of injury, but 50 percent of the muscles below the level of injury cannot move against gravity.
Grade D
Most (more than 50 percent) of the muscles that are spared below the level of injury are strong enough to move against gravity.
Grade E
All neurologic function has returned.
Spinal Cord Injury Details
Table of Contents
- Spinal Cord Injury: Basic Facts
- Spinal Cord Anatomy: The Basics
- Levels of Injury
- ASIA/ISCoS Exam and Grade
- Glossary of Terms You May Hear
- Questions Families Should Ask Their Trauma Care Medical Team
- Expected Emotions and Helpful Coping Tips
- Important Tips for the Days and Weeks After the Injury or Diagnosis
- Steps to Negotiate the Insurance Maze
- Helpful Resources, and Credible Organizations and Web Sites
Produced by Shepherd Center and KPKinteractive in collaboration with the American Trauma Society, the National Spinal Cord Injury Association and the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation.
