1821, "affected with paraplegia;" see paraplegia + -ic. The noun meaning "paraplegic person" is recorded by 1890. An earlier adjectival form was paraplectic (1660s).
Entries linking to paraplegic
paraplegia n.
"paralysis of the lower half of the body," 1650s, Latinized form of (Ionic) Greek paraplēgia "paralysis of one side of the body," from paraplēssein "strike at the side," paraplēssesthai "be stricken on one side," from para- "beside" (see para- (1)) + plēssein "to strike" (from PIE root *plak- (2) "to strike").
-ic
Middle English -ik, -ick, word-forming element making adjectives, "having to do with, having the nature of, being, made of, caused by, similar to," from French -ique and directly from Latin -icus or from cognate Greek -ikos "in the manner of; pertaining to." From PIE adjective suffix *-(i)ko, which also yielded Slavic -isku, adjectival suffix indicating origin, the source of the -sky (Russian -skii) in many surnames. In chemistry, indicating a higher valence than names in -ous (first in benzoic, 1791).
In Middle English and after often spelled -ick, -ike, -ique. Variant forms in -ick (critick, ethick) were common in early Modern English and survived in English dictionaries into early 19c. This spelling was supported by Johnson but opposed by Webster, who prevailed.