Chronic damage after spinal trauma in rat: neurophysiological and ultrastructural investigations.

A group of 10 rats underwent spinal trauma by epidural spinal compression according to Tator's procedure. After 4 months from injury cortical and spinal SEP were recorded, and the spinal injured tract was examined by electronic microscope. We studied morphologic and functional changes showed after some months behind the trauma. This report demonstrates and compares the varying sensitivity of cortical and spinal SEP for revealing functional spinal damage; ultrastructural investigations testify to the existence of reparative processes of the nervous tissue.