More than 750,000 people in the United States, including veterans, live with spinal cord injury or a spinal cord disease (SCI/D). Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) responds to their needs by supporting research, educational programs and other initiatives that unite people and activities toward a single mission: improved quality of life.

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Research into treatments and cures for SCI has been a priority for Paralyzed Veterans of America since our earliest days. Our founders were pioneers in promoting research. They recognized that paralysis does not affect veterans of military service exclusively, but can happen to anyone at any stage of their lives.

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Until a few decades ago, most scientists believed that paralysis due to spinal cord injury was impossible to reverse. Steady research investment from PVA and others committed to finding a way to reverse paralysis has produced promising laboratory results and demonstrated that, given the right parameters, it is possible to reverse nerve damage, rewire severed nerves, and restore lost neurological function.

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PVA continues to work towards alleviating the effects of and finding a cure for SCI/D through the efforts of the PVA Education Foundation, the PVA Research Foundation, multiple partnerships and the Consortium for Spinal Cord Medicine’s evidence-based clinical practice guidelines and consumer guides.