Abstract
BackgroundSpinal cord injuries are highly disabling and deadly injuries. Currently, few studies focus on non-traumatic spinal cord injuries, and there is little information regarding the risk factors for complete injuries. This study aims to describe the demographics and the injury characteristics for both traumatic and non-traumatic spinal cord injuries and to explore the risk factors for complete spinal cord injuries.MethodsA retrospective study was performed by reviewing the medical records of 3,832 patients with spinal cord injuries who were first admitted to the sampled hospitals in Guangdong, China. The demographics and injury characteristics of the patients were described and compared between the different groups using the chi-square test. Logistic regression was conducted to analyze the risk factors for complete spinal cord injuries.ResultsThe proportion of patients increased from 7.0% to 14.0% from 2003 to 2011. The male-to-female ratio was 3.0∶1. The major cause of spinal cord injuries was traffic accidents (21.7%). Many of the injured were workers (36.2%), peasants (22.8%), and unemployed people (13.9%); these occupations accounted for 72.9% of the total sample. A multivariate logistic regression model revealed that the OR (95% CI) for male gender compared to female gender was 1.25 (1.07–1.89), the OR (95%CI) for having a spinal fracture was 1.56 (1.35–2.60), the OR (95%CI) for having a thoracic injury was 1.23 (1.10–2.00), and the OR (95%CI) for having complications was 2.47 (1.96–3.13).ConclusionThe proportion of males was higher than the proportion of females. Workers, peasants and the unemployed comprised the high-risk occupational categories. Male gender, having a spinal fracture, having a thoracic injury, and having complications were the major risk factors for a complete injury. We recommend that preventive measures should focus on high-risk populations, such as young males.
Highlights
In a spinal cord injury (SCI), the structures and functions of the spinal cord are damaged by trauma, inflammation, tumors or other causes, resulting in dysfunction of motion, feeling, sphincters and autonomic nerves below the damaged plane
SCIs can be divided into two different groups: traumatic spinal cord injuries (TSCI) and non-traumatic spinal cord injuries (NTSCI) [1]
The total number of ward beds in the study hospitals remained unchanged over the study period, the proportion of SCI admissions increased (Fig. 1)
Summary
In a spinal cord injury (SCI), the structures and functions of the spinal cord are damaged by trauma, inflammation, tumors or other causes, resulting in dysfunction of motion, feeling, sphincters and autonomic nerves below the damaged plane. A SCI is a highly disabling and deadly injury Based on their etiology, SCIs can be divided into two different groups: traumatic spinal cord injuries (TSCI) and non-traumatic spinal cord injuries (NTSCI) [1]. Spinal cord injuries are highly disabling and concentrated in young adults, so they bring great pain to the affected individuals and their families. Australia reported that the average estimated incidence rates of traumatic and non-traumatic spinal cord injuries were 3.8 and 6.5 per million children younger than 15 years of age, respectively [8]. Taiwan reported that the incidence rate of pediatric spinal cord injuries is 5.99 per million person-years [10]. Young adults are the age group at the highest risk of SCIs: the 21to-30 age group has the highest number of patients, and the number of SCIs is greater in males than in females. This study aims to describe the demographics and the injury characteristics for both traumatic and non-traumatic spinal cord injuries and to explore the risk factors for complete spinal cord injuries
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