What happens to/in the central nervous system during locked in syndrome?

Question: What happens to/in the central nervous system during locked in syndrome?
- Keywords:
  central nervous system,
  CNS,
  locked-in,
  nervous,
  paralysis,
  syndrome
Asked by hilmyrwh to Helen, Jenni, Mark, Martin, Stu on 16 Jun 2011.
- Helen O'Connor answered on 16 Jun 2011:
  
  A neurobiologist in the brain zone would probably know a lot more but here is my knowledge on it:
  
  Locked-in syndrome is really rare, where someone is completely paralysed in all their muscles (apart from the muscles around the eye – which is why they can still communicate by blinking). But the person can still think and understand what is going on around them. There are several ways people might get locked in syndrom including brain injury or drug overdoses – and there is no treatment for it, although some stories of people who spontaneously recover from it.
  
  Scientists think that locked-in syndrome is caused by damaged to a part of the brain called the “pons” that contains lots of nerve fibres that send information to other areas of the brain.
- Mark Burnley answered on 16 Jun 2011:
  
  I have not studied this, sorry!

Question: What happens to/in the central nervous system during locked in syndrome?