PMID- 22648015
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20121105
LR  - 20220330
IS  - 1879-0267 (Electronic)
IS  - 0020-1383 (Linking)
VI  - 43
IP  - 8
DP  - 2012 Aug
TI  - The changing epidemiology of spinal trauma: a 13-year review from a Level I 
      trauma centre.
PG  - 1296-300
LID - 10.1016/j.injury.2012.04.021 [doi]
AB  - INTRODUCTION: Spinal injuries secondary to trauma are a major cause of patient 
      morbidity and a source of significant health care expenditure. Increases in 
      traffic safety standards and improved health care resources may have changed the 
      characteristics and incidence of spinal injury. The purpose of this study was to 
      review a single metropolitan Level I trauma centre's experience to assess the 
      changing characteristics and incidence of traumatic spinal injuries and spinal 
      cord injuries (SCI) over a 13-year period. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective 
      review of patients admitted to a Level I trauma centre between 1996 and 2008 was 
      performed. Patients with spinal fractures and SCI were identified. Demographics, 
      mechanism of injury, level of spinal injury and Injury Severity Score (ISS) were 
      extracted. The outcomes assessed were the incidence rate of SCI and in-hospital 
      mortality. RESULTS: Over the 13-year period, 5.8% of all trauma patients suffered 
      spinal fractures, with 21.7% of patients with spinal injuries having SCI. Motor 
      vehicle accidents (MVAs) were responsible for the majority of spinal injuries 
      (32.6%). The mortality rate due to spinal injury decreased significantly over the 
      study period despite a constant mean ISS. The incidence rate of SCI also 
      decreased over the years, which was paralleled by a significant reduction in MVA 
      associated SCI (from 23.5% in 1996 to 14.3% in 2001 to 6.7% in 2008). With 
      increasing age there was an increase in spinal injuries; frequency of blunt SCI; 
      and injuries at multiple spinal levels. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated a 
      reduction in mortality attributable to spinal injury. There has been a marked 
      reduction in SCI due to MVAs, which may be related to improvements in motor 
      vehicle safety and traffic regulations. The elderly population was more likely to 
      suffer SCI, especially by blunt injury, and at multiple levels. Underlying 
      reasons may be anatomical, physiological or mechanism related.
CI  - Copyright (c) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
FAU - Oliver, M
AU  - Oliver M
AD  - Division of Trauma and Surgical Critical Care, University of Southern California, 
      Los Angeles, CA 90033-4525, USA. drmatoliver@gmail.com
FAU - Inaba, K
AU  - Inaba K
FAU - Tang, A
AU  - Tang A
FAU - Branco, B C
AU  - Branco BC
FAU - Barmparas, G
AU  - Barmparas G
FAU - Schnuriger, B
AU  - Schnuriger B
FAU - Lustenberger, T
AU  - Lustenberger T
FAU - Demetriades, D
AU  - Demetriades D
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
DEP - 20120528
PL  - Netherlands
TA  - Injury
JT  - Injury
JID - 0226040
SB  - IM
MH  - Accidental Falls/economics/*statistics & numerical data
MH  - Accidents, Traffic/economics/*statistics & numerical data
MH  - Adolescent
MH  - Adult
MH  - Aged
MH  - Aged, 80 and over
MH  - Child
MH  - Child, Preschool
MH  - Female
MH  - Humans
MH  - Incidence
MH  - Infant
MH  - Injury Severity Score
MH  - Longitudinal Studies
MH  - Male
MH  - Middle Aged
MH  - North America/epidemiology
MH  - Retrospective Studies
MH  - Risk Factors
MH  - Spinal Cord Injuries/economics/*epidemiology/etiology/mortality
MH  - Spinal Injuries/economics/*epidemiology/etiology/mortality
MH  - Trauma Centers/economics/*statistics & numerical data
MH  - Young Adult
EDAT- 2012/06/01 06:00
MHDA- 2012/11/06 06:00
CRDT- 2012/06/01 06:00
PHST- 2011/04/01 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2011/12/20 00:00 [revised]
PHST- 2012/04/27 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2012/06/01 06:00 [entrez]
PHST- 2012/06/01 06:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2012/11/06 06:00 [medline]
AID - S0020-1383(12)00166-0 [pii]
AID - 10.1016/j.injury.2012.04.021 [doi]
PST - ppublish
SO  - Injury. 2012 Aug;43(8):1296-300. doi: 10.1016/j.injury.2012.04.021. Epub 2012 May 
      28.