Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury in Enugu, Nigeria: Epidemeology and Outcome

Autor: Nduduisi Ebere Duru, Chidi Nwoga, C. U. Nwadinigwe, Remigius T. Ekwunife, Emmanuel C. Iyidobi, Kenechi A. Madu
Rok vydání: 2018
Předmět:
Zdroj: Journal of Biosciences and Medicines. :53-60
ISSN: 2327-509X
2327-5081
DOI: 10.4236/jbm.2018.69006
Popis: Background: Spinal cord injury represents one of the most physically and psychologically devastating trauma. Before modern medicine, it was considered an ailment not to be treated. In incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI), there is residual sensory and/or motor function. Method: This was to determine the epidemiology, treatment options and outcome of incomplete SCI at National Orthopedic Hospital Enugu, Nigeria, over a 5 year period. This was a descriptive retrospective study of patients managed for incomplete spinal cord injury between January 2011 and December 2015. This was to determine the epidemiology, various treatment options and their outcome in patients with incomplete SCI managed in our center. The patients’ biodata, mechanism of injury, time of presentation, pattern of injury, level of injury, type of treatment, associated injuries, complications, duration of treatment and American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) assessment at presentation and at discharge were collected. Data analysis was done using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 20.0. All tests were regarded as significant at P-values < 0.05. Results: A total of 57 patients (49 males and 8 females) were included and analyzed showing a male to female ratio of 6.3:1. Incomplete traumatic SCI forms about 44.2% of all traumatic SCI in Enugu. This represents 0.09% of all patients and 0.9% of all trauma patients seen. The cervical spine (59.6%) is the most commonly affected isolated anatomic region. Road traffic accident (52.6%) was the most common aeteology. Compression fracture was the commonest injury (33.3%). Majority of the patients (57.9%) had ASIA C at presentation while 47.4% and 33.3% of the patients had ASIA D and E respectively at discharge. Most of the patients (91.2%) had conservative treatments. Conclusion: The significant ASIA grade improvement of majority of the patients suggests good functional outcome of incomplete SCI treated conservatively at our hospital.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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