The Effect of Concomitant Spinal Cord Injury on Postoperative Health-related Quality of Life After Traumatic Subaxial Cervical Spine Injuries: A Nationwide Registry Study

Abstract

ObjectiveTo evaluate the effect of spinal cord injury (SCI) on the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients surgically treated for traumatic subaxial cervical spine injuries and investigate the agreement between objective neurologic outcomes and patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) in that context. Study DesignObservational study on prospectively collected multi-institutional registry data. SettingSweden. ParticipantsPatients with traumatic subaxial spine injuries identified in the Swedish Spine Registry (Swespine) between 2006 and 2016. InterventionsAnterior, posterior, or anteroposterior cervical fixation surgery. Main OutcomesPatient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) consisting of EQ-5D-3Lindex and Neck Disability Index (NDI). ResultsAmong the 418 identified patients, 93 (22%) had a concomitant SCI. In this group, 30 (32%) had a complete SCI (Frankel A), and the remainder had incomplete SCIs (17%) Frankel B; 25 (27%) Frankel C; 22 (24%) Frankel D. PROMs significantly correlated with the Frankel grade (P<.001). However, post hoc analysis revealed that the differences between adjacent Frankel grades failed to reach both statistical and clinical significance. On univariable linear regression, the Frankel grade was a significant predictor of a specific index derived from the EQ-5D-3L questionnaire (EQ-5D-3Lindex) at 1, 2, and 5 years postoperatively as well as the NDI at 1 and 2 years postoperatively (P<.001). Changes of PROMs over time from 1, to 2, and 5 years postoperatively did not reach statistical significance, regardless of the presence and degree of SCI (P>.05). ConclusionOverall, the Frankel grade significantly correlated with the EQ-5D-3Lindex and NDI and was a significant predictor of PROMs at 1, 2, and 5 years. PROMs were stable beyond 1 year postoperatively regardless of the severity of the SCI.