What does the ASIA impairment scale assess?

• A. Sensory and motor function after spinal cord injury to determine level and completeness of injury.
• B. Autonomic function after spinal cord injury.
• C. Cognitive function following brain injury.
• D. Blood pressure response after spinal trauma.

Answer: (A)

The ASIA impairment scale is used to classify spinal cord injury by assessing sensory and motor function to determine both the level of the injury and whether the injury is complete or incomplete. Clinically, sensory testing uses pinprick and light touch across key dermatomes on both sides to establish the sensory level, while motor testing evaluates strength in key muscles corresponding to specific myotomes to establish the motor level. The most caudal level with preserved function, especially if sacral S4-S5 function is present, indicates an incomplete injury; if there is no preserved function below the injury, it is considered complete. This framework places injuries along a spectrum from complete to normal (with the categories reflecting the remaining function below the injury). Other aspects like autonomic function, cognitive function after brain injury, or blood pressure responses after spinal trauma are not the primary focus of this scale and are assessed with different tools or in different contexts.