Prevention of diving-induced spinal cord injuries-preliminary results of the first Romanian mass media prophylactic educational intervention.

Abstract

The study was an observational study of the seasonal incidence of diving accidents, according to the summer weather pattern and the influence of an educative prophylactic intervention. The study analyzed the preliminary results of a national project, disseminated on social networking (Facebook) and broadcasted on main national and international Romanian TV channels. The study was conducted at the Neurorehabilitation, Teaching Emergency Hospital 'Bagdasar-Arseni.' The study had a dichotomous design (a retrospective review and a prospective component), and it analyzed the evolution trends of diving accidents, before and after the prophylactic intervention. The retrospective review analyzed 41 diving accidents, registered during 2011-2015. The prospective component focused on cases registered in 2016. Spearman's Rho non-parametric test was used to evaluate the association between two variables (the air temperature and the number of diving accidents). The study involved 46 males and 1 female, with a mean age (at the time of injury) 26.4±7.02 (median 25, mode 23), admitted to rehabilitation in an early post-acute status after surgical intervention. Male youths and young adults <35 years old represented 83% of all cases. During 2011-2015, a monotonic association between the summer climate and the incidence of diving-induced tetraplegia (R=0.97468; P=0.00482) was noticed. Analyzing the evolutionary trends of similar cases registered in 2016, variables did not increase in value together (R=0.73561; P=0.09561). In 2016, the number of diving-induced quadriplegics was reduced on average by 26.8%. One year is not enough for a successful, durable educative intervention. It is compulsory to continue, extend and intensively promote this program.