Spine Levels—C3, 4, 5
Recall that ordinarily you breathe with:
- your diaphragm, innervated by C345
- your intercostals, innervated segmentally
In times of trouble, accessory muscles also come into play.
With a C6 spinal cord level, you lose everything below C6, including your intercostals.
Thus the only muscle that you are moving air with is your diaphragm, which can fatigue or be affected by swelling of the injured spinal cord.
Watch breathing carefully after C-spine injury.
Delerious and confused patients are HYPOXIC until actively proven otherwise.
