Spine

When sparring, contact to the back is illegal and will draw a warning or possible disqualification. Two reasons for this are the kidneys and the spine. A ruptured kidney could lead to death if not treated quickly, but, with treatment, you would probably recover with no further problems. However, depending on the location of the fracture, a fracture to the spine could result in serious problems, some of which may be permanent. In a life or death, self-defense situation, the spine may be a valid target. The effects of a strike to the spine will depend on  where it is struck, the force of the strike, and the severity of the injury.

The spine is divided into four segments, with the coccyx (tail bone) at the base:

• Cervical
• Thoracic
• Lumbar
• Sacrum

Each disk in a segment and its associated nerves is named with a letter-number combination. 

Each disk is associated with certain bodily functions. The following table indicates functions affected by each disk and what the possible effects may be if disk injured.

Cervical Segment
Disk	Functions	Effects of Injury
C1	Pituitary gland, brain, and sympathetic nervous system	Unconsciousness, headache, dizziness, and insomnia
C2	Eyes, optic nerves, and auditory nerves	Blindness, deafness, and unconsciousness
C3	Trifacial nerve Eustachian tube Neck glands, pharynx, vocal cords Neck muscles and shoulders Thyroid gland, shoulder joints, and elbows	Neuralgia and neuritis
C4	Eustachian tube	Loss of hearing and movement of shoulder
C5	Neck glands, pharynx, vocal cords	Loss of voice and movement of arms
C6	Neck muscles and shoulders	Neck and upper arm paralysis
C7	Thyroid gland, shoulder joints, and elbows	Loss of arm and shoulder movement

Thoracic Segment
Disk	Functions	Effects of Injury
T1	Arms from elbows down, esophagus and trachea	Loss of breath, difficult breathing, and pain in lower arms and hands
T2	Heart and coronary arteries	Loss of the heart function and chest conditions
T3	Lungs, bronchial tubes, and chest	Loss of breath, fever, and night sweating
T4	Gall bladder	Malfunction of gall bladder
T5	Liver, solar plexus, blood, and splanchnic nerve	Death, vomiting blood, cardiac pain, poor circulation, liver problems, and dizziness
T6	Stomach, splanchnic nerve	Death, vomiting blood, cardiac pain, and abdominal pain
T7	Pancreas, duodenum, splanchnic nerve	Coughing, pain in chest and back, stiffness of the spinal column, and vomiting
T8	Spleen, splanchnic nerve.	Stiffness in back, vomiting, and abdominal pain
T9	Adrenal and supra-renal glands, splanchnic nerve	Pain in chest, blurry vision, and mental confusion
T10	Kidneys and abdomen	Kidney problems and hardening of arteries
T11	Kidney and uterus	Kidney problems and abdominal pains
T12	Small intestines, lymph circulation	Sterility and abdominal pain

Lumbar Segment
Disk	Functions	Effects of Injury
L1	Large intestines, inguinal rings	Internal ruptures, undigested food, and intestinal malfunction
L2	Appendix, abdomen, upper legs, femoral nerve	Cramps, difficulty in breathing, impotency, thigh paralysis, and blurred vision
L3	Sex organs, uterus, bladder, knees, femoral nerve	Bladder trouble, thigh paralysis, and knees
T4	Prostate gland, muscles of lower back, sciatic and femoral nerve	Difficult and painful urination, impotence, and hip paralysis
L5	Lower legs, ankles, feet, sacral nerves	Poor circulation and weakness in legs, hip paralysis, and leg paralysis
Sacrum Segment
Disk	Functions	Effects of Injury
S1	Sacral nerves for vessels on leg	Hip and leg or foot paralysis
S2	Distal colon, rectum, external genitalia, and pelvic nerve	Hip, leg or foot paralysis, and retention of urine
S3	Bladder, distal colon, rectum, external genitalia, and pelvic nerve	Paralysis of leg
S4	Bladder, distal colon, rectum, external genitalia, and pelvic nerve	Paralysis of hip joint and lower back
S5	Sympathetic chain and sacral nerves	Paralysis of lower extremities
Coccyx
Disk	Functions	Effects of Injury
	Coccygeal nerve, rectum, and anus	Paralysis of both legs