Journal Home > Volume 6 , Issue 1
Journal of Neurorestoratology 2018, 6(1): 1-9 https://doi.org/10.2147/JN.S143236
Review | Open Access | Issue | Published: 26 June 2018

Epidemiology of worldwide spinal cord injury: a literature review

Show Author's Information Yi Kang1,2,*,  Han Ding1,2,*,  Hengxing Zhou1,2,  Zhijian Wei1,2,  Lu Liu1,2,  Dayu Pan1,2,  Shiqing Feng1,2( )
Department of Orthopaedics, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital
Tianjin Neurological Institute, Key Laboratory of Post-Neuroinjury Neuro-repair and Regeneration in Central Nervous System, Ministry of Education and Tianjin City, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China

*These authors contributed equally to this work

Keywords:
complications, spinal cord injury, etiology, incidence, patient demographics
Cite this article:
Kang Y, Ding H, Zhou H, et al. Epidemiology of worldwide spinal cord injury: a literature review. Journal of Neurorestoratology, 2018, 6(1): 1-9. https://doi.org/10.2147/JN.S143236
Download citation
EndNote(RIS)
BibTeX

1216

Views

147

Downloads

Citations

145

Crossref

175

WoS

0

Scopus

N/A

CSCD

Abstract Full text About this article
Study design:

A literature review of worldwide epidemiology of spinal cord injury (SCI).

Objectives:

To review the epidemiological indicators of SCI, such as incidence, prevalence, demographic characteristics, etiology, level and severity of injury, complications and mortality.

Setting:

The Department of Orthopaedics, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Heping District, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China.

Methods:

We searched articles published in PubMed, Medline, EMBASE and the Web of Science between January 1993 and June 2017 using the key words “spinal cord injury”, “traumatic spinal cord injury”, “non-traumatic spinal cord injury” and “epidemiology”. The incidence, etiology, prevalence, patient demographics, level and severity of injury, complications and mortality were reviewed from the articles.

Results:

The epidemiology of SCI has changed. Motor vehicle accidents and falls have become the most common reasons of injury gradually. Incidence of SCI varies by regions or countries, and it has gradually increased with the expansion of human activities. The number of male patients were significantly more than female, the average age of patients with SCI had a tendency to increase gradually. The cervical level of spine was the most common part of injury; there were more number of patients with tetraplegia than patients with paraplegia. Electrolyte disturbances, pulmonary infections, urinary tract infections and bedsores were the four most common complications.

Conclusion:

We must have a greater understanding of epidemiology to implement more preventative measures. The epidemiology in different regions is of significant difference, which may be resulted from economic, science and technology, medical, geographical and even social conditions. Therefore, we must establish appropriate intervention measures according to the particularity of population.


menu
Abstract
Full text
Outline
About this article

Epidemiology of worldwide spinal cord injury: a literature review

Show Author's information Yi Kang1,2,*, Han Ding1,2,*, Hengxing Zhou1,2, Zhijian Wei1,2, Lu Liu1,2, Dayu Pan1,2, Shiqing Feng1,2( )
Department of Orthopaedics, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital
Tianjin Neurological Institute, Key Laboratory of Post-Neuroinjury Neuro-repair and Regeneration in Central Nervous System, Ministry of Education and Tianjin City, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China

*These authors contributed equally to this work

Abstract

Study design:

A literature review of worldwide epidemiology of spinal cord injury (SCI).

Objectives:

To review the epidemiological indicators of SCI, such as incidence, prevalence, demographic characteristics, etiology, level and severity of injury, complications and mortality.

Setting:

The Department of Orthopaedics, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Heping District, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China.

Methods:

We searched articles published in PubMed, Medline, EMBASE and the Web of Science between January 1993 and June 2017 using the key words “spinal cord injury”, “traumatic spinal cord injury”, “non-traumatic spinal cord injury” and “epidemiology”. The incidence, etiology, prevalence, patient demographics, level and severity of injury, complications and mortality were reviewed from the articles.

Results:

The epidemiology of SCI has changed. Motor vehicle accidents and falls have become the most common reasons of injury gradually. Incidence of SCI varies by regions or countries, and it has gradually increased with the expansion of human activities. The number of male patients were significantly more than female, the average age of patients with SCI had a tendency to increase gradually. The cervical level of spine was the most common part of injury; there were more number of patients with tetraplegia than patients with paraplegia. Electrolyte disturbances, pulmonary infections, urinary tract infections and bedsores were the four most common complications.

Conclusion:

We must have a greater understanding of epidemiology to implement more preventative measures. The epidemiology in different regions is of significant difference, which may be resulted from economic, science and technology, medical, geographical and even social conditions. Therefore, we must establish appropriate intervention measures according to the particularity of population.

Keywords: complications, spinal cord injury, etiology, incidence, patient demographics

References(63)

1.
Huang H, Mao G, Chen L, Liu A. Progress and challenges with clinical cell therapy in neurorestoratology. J Neurorestoratol. 2015;3:91-95.
DOI Google Scholar
2.
Inman C. Effectiveness of spinal cord injury rehabilitation. Clin Rehabil. 1999;13(Suppl 1):25-31.
DOI Google Scholar
3.
Pickelsimer E, Shiroma EJ, Wilson DA. Statewide investigation of medically attended adverse health conditions of persons with spinal cord injury. J Spinal Cord Med. 2010;33(3):221-231.
DOI Google Scholar
4.
Adams RD, Salam-Adams M. Chronic nontraumatic diseases of the spinal cord. Neurol Clin. 1991;9(3):605-623.
DOI Google Scholar
5.
Dawson DM, Potts F. Acute nontraumatic myelopathies. Neurol Clin. 1991;9(3):585-603.
DOI Google Scholar
6.
Schmidt RD, Markovchick V. Nontraumatic spinal cord compression. J Emerg Med. 1992;10(2):189-199.
DOI Google Scholar
7.
Lenehan B, Street J, Kwon BK, et al. The epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury in British Columbia, Canada. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2012;37(4):321-329.
DOI Google Scholar
8.
van den Berg ME, Castellote JM, Mahillo-Fernandez I, de Pedro-Cuesta J. Incidence of spinal cord injury worldwide: a systematic review. Neuroepidemiology. 2010;34(3):184-192; discussion 192.
DOI Google Scholar
9.
Li J, Liu G, Zheng Y, et al. The epidemiological survey of acute traumatic spinal cord injury (ATSCI) of 2002 in Beijing municipality. Spinal Cord. 2011;49(7):777-782.
DOI Google Scholar
10.
Ning GZ, Wu Q, Li YL, Feng SQ. Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury in Asia: a systematic review. J Spinal Cord Med. 2012;35(4):229-239.
DOI Google Scholar
11.
Nijendijk JH, Post MW, van Asbeck FW. Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injuries in The Netherlands in 2010. Spinal Cord. 2014;52(4):258-263.
DOI Google Scholar
12.
Montoto-Marqués A, Ferreiro-Velasco ME, Salvador-de la Barrera S, Balboa-Barreiro V, Rodriguez-Sotillo A, Meijide-Failde R. Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury in Galicia, Spain: trends over a 20-year period. Spinal Cord. 2017;55(6):588-594.
DOI Google Scholar
13.
Bárbara-Bataller E, Méndez-Suárez JL, Alemán-Sánchez C, Ramírez-Lorenzo T, Sosa-Henríquez M. [Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury in Gran Canaria]. Neurocirugia (Astur). 2017;28(1):15-21. Spanish.
DOI Google Scholar
14.
Taşoğlu Ö, Koyuncu E, Daylak R, et al. Demographic and clinical characteristics of persons with spinal cord injury in Turkey: one-year experience of a primary referral rehabilitation center. J Spinal Cord Med. Epub 2016 Oct 20.
Google Scholar
15.
Chamberlain JD, Deriaz O, Hund-Georgiadis M, et al. Epidemiology and contemporary risk profile of traumatic spinal cord injury in Switzerland. Inj Epidemiol. 2015;2(1):28.
DOI Google Scholar
16.
Shrestha P, Shrestha S, Shrestha RK. Retrospective study of spinal cord injury patients admitted to spinal injury rehabilitation center, Sanga, Banepa, Nepal. Nepal Med Coll J. 2014;16(2-4):169-172.
Google Scholar
17.
Sabre L, Pedai G, Rekand T, Asser T, Linnamägi U, Kõrv J. High incidence of traumatic spinal cord injury in Estonia. Spinal Cord. 2012;50(10):755-759.
DOI Google Scholar
18.
Ning GZ, Yu TQ, Feng SQ, et al. Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury in Tianjin, China. Spinal Cord. 2011;49(3):386-390.
DOI Google Scholar
19.
Löfvenmark I, Norrbrink C, Nilsson-Wikmar L, Hultling C, Chakandinakira S, Hasselberg M. Traumatic spinal cord injury in Botswana: characteristics, aetiology and mortality. Spinal Cord. 2015;53(2):150-154.
DOI Google Scholar
20.
Pickett GE, Campos-Benitez M, Keller JL, Duggal N. Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury in Canada. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2006;31(7):799-805.
DOI Google Scholar
21.
O’Connor RJ, Murray PC. Review of spinal cord injuries in Ireland. Spinal Cord. 2006;44(7):445-448.
DOI Google Scholar
22.
Sabre L, Remmer S, Adams A, et al. Impact of fatal cases on the epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury in Estonia. Eur J Neurol. 2015;22(5):768-772.
DOI Google Scholar
23.
Wyndaele M, Wyndaele JJ. Incidence, prevalence and epidemiology of spinal cord injury: what learns a worldwide literature survey? Spinal Cord. 2006;44(9):523-529.
DOI Google Scholar
24.
New PW, Baxter D, Farry A, Noonan VK. Estimating the incidence and prevalence of traumatic spinal cord injury in Australia. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2015;96(1):76-83.
DOI Google Scholar
25.
Knútsdóttir S, Thórisdóttir H, Sigvaldason K, Jónsson H Jr, Björnsson A, Ingvarsson P. Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injuries in Iceland from 1975 to 2009. Spinal Cord. 2012;50(2):123-126.
DOI Google Scholar
26.
Rahimi-Movaghar V, Saadat S, Rasouli MR, et al. Prevalence of spinal cord injury in Tehran, Iran. J Spinal Cord Med. 2009;32(4):428-431.
DOI Google Scholar
27.
New PW, Farry A, Baxter D, Noonan VK. Prevalence of non-traumatic spinal cord injury in Victoria, Australia. Spinal Cord. 2013;51(2):99-102.
DOI Google Scholar
28.
Oteir AO, Smith K, Stoelwinder JU, Cox S, Middleton JW, Jennings PA. The epidemiology of pre-hospital potential spinal cord injuries in Victoria, Australia: a six year retrospective cohort study. Inj Epidemiol. 2016;3(1):25.
DOI Google Scholar
29.
Lehre MA, Eriksen LM, Tirsit A, et al. Outcome in patients undergoing surgery for spinal injury in an Ethiopian hospital. J Neurosurg Spine. 2015;23(6):772-779.
DOI Google Scholar
30.
Vitale MG, Goss JM, Matsumoto H, Roye DP, Jr. Epidemiology of pediatric spinal cord injury in the United States: years 1997 and 2000. J Pediatr Orthop. 2006;26(6):745-749.
DOI Google Scholar
31.
Katoh S, Enishi T, Sato N, Sairyo K. High incidence of acute traumatic spinal cord injury in a rural population in Japan in 2011 and 2012: an epidemiological study. Spinal Cord. 2014;52(4):264-267.
DOI Google Scholar
32.
Alshahri SS, Cripps RA, Lee BB, Al-Jadid MS. Traumatic spinal cord injury in Saudi Arabia: an epidemiological estimate from Riyadh. Spinal Cord. 2012;50(12):882-884.
DOI Google Scholar
33.
Javadi M, Hafezi-Nejad N, Vaccaro AR, Rahimi-Movaghar V. Medical complications and patient outcomes in Iranian veterans with spinal cord injury. Adv Clin Exp Med. 2014;23(2):269-275.
DOI Google Scholar
34.
Thompson C, Mutch J, Parent S, Mac-Thiong JM. The changing demographics of traumatic spinal cord injury: an 11-year study of 831 patients. J Spinal Cord Med. 2015;38(2):214-223.
DOI Google Scholar
35.
Sothmann J, Stander J, Kruger N, Dunn R. Epidemiology of acute spinal cord injuries in the Groote Schuur Hospital Acute Spinal Cord Injury (GSH ASCI) Unit, Cape Town, South Africa, over the past 11 years. S Afr Med J. 2015;105(10):835-839.
DOI Google Scholar
36.
Bellucci CH, Castro Filho JE, Gomes CM, et al. Contemporary trends in the epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury: changes in age and etiology. Neuroepidemiology. 2015;44(2):85-90.
DOI Google Scholar
37.
Dryden DM, Saunders LD, Rowe BH, et al. Depression following traumatic spinal cord injury. Neuroepidemiology. 2005;25(2):55-61.
DOI Google Scholar
38.
Shin JC, Kim DH, Yu SJ, Yang HE, Yoon SY. Epidemiologic change of patients with spinal cord injury. Ann Rehabil Med. 2013;37(1):50-56.
DOI Google Scholar
39.
Dryden DM, Saunders LD, Rowe BH, et al. The epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury in Alberta, Canada. Can J Neurol Sci. 2003;30(2):113-121.
DOI Google Scholar
40.
Jain NB, Ayers GD, Peterson EN, et al. Traumatic spinal cord injury in the United States, 1993-2012. JAMA. 2015;313(22):2236-2243.
DOI Google Scholar
41.
Kristinsdottir EA, Knutsdottir S, Sigvaldason K, Jonsson H, Jr, Ingvarsson PE. [Epidemiology of spinal cord injury in Iceland from 1975 to 2014]. Laeknabladid. 2016;102(11):491-496. Icelandic.
Google Scholar
42.
Knox J. Epidemiology of spinal cord injury without radiographic abnormality in children: a nationwide perspective. J Child Orthop. 2016;10(3):255-260.
DOI Google Scholar
43.
Æsø MS, Solvang SH, Grønning M, Rekand T. Epidemiology of persistent iatrogenic spinal cord injuries in Western Norway. Brain Behav. 2016;6(10):e00522. eCollection 2016.
DOI Google Scholar
44.
McKinley WO, Seel RT, Hardman JT. Nontraumatic spinal cord injury: incidence, epidemiology, and functional outcome. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1999;80(6):619-623.
DOI Google Scholar
45.
Ning GZ, Mu ZP, Shangguan L, et al. Epidemiological features of traumatic spinal cord injury in Chongqing, China. J Spinal Cord Med. 2016;39(4):455-460.
DOI Google Scholar
46.
Chen Y, Tang Y, Allen V, DeVivo MJ. Fall-induced spinal cord injury: external causes and implications for prevention. J Spinal Cord Med. 2016;39(1):24-31.
DOI Google Scholar
47.
Wang CM, Chen Y, DeVivo MJ, Huang CT. Epidemiology of extraspinal fractures associated with acute spinal cord injury. Spinal Cord. 2001;39(11):589-594.
DOI Google Scholar
48.
Devivo MJ. Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury: trends and future implications. Spinal Cord. 2012;50(5):365-372.
DOI Google Scholar
49.
Garshick E, Kelley A, Cohen SA, et al. A prospective assessment of mortality in chronic spinal cord injury. Spinal Cord. 2005;43(7):408-416.
DOI Google Scholar
50.
McCaughey EJ, Purcell M, Barnett SC, Allan DB. Spinal cord injury caused by stab wounds: incidence, natural history, and relevance for future research. J Neurotrauma. 2016;33(15):1416-1421.
DOI Google Scholar
51.
Majdan M, Brazinova A, Mauritz W. Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injuries in Austria 2002-2012. Eur Spine J. 2016;25(1):62-73.
DOI Google Scholar
52.
Chen Y, He Y, DeVivo MJ. Changing demographics and injury profile of new traumatic spinal cord injuries in the United States, 1972-2014. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2016;97(10):1610-1619.
DOI Google Scholar
53.
Selassie A, Cao Y, Saunders LL. Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury among persons older than 21 Years: a population-based study in South Carolina, 1998-2012. Top Spinal Cord Inj Rehabil. 2015;21(4):333-344.
DOI Google Scholar
54.
Saunders LL, Selassie A, Cao Y, Zebracki K, Vogel LC. Epidemiology of pediatric traumatic spinal cord injury in a population-based cohort, 1998-2012. Top Spinal Cord Inj Rehabil. 2015;21(4):325-332.
DOI Google Scholar
55.
Mathur N, Jain S, Kumar N, Srivastava A, Purohit N, Patni A. Spinal cord injury: scenario in an Indian state. Spinal Cord. 2015;53(5):349-352.
DOI Google Scholar
56.
Nwankwo OE, Uche EO. Epidemiological and treatment profiles of spinal cord injury in southeast Nigeria. Spinal Cord. 2013;51(6):448-452.
DOI Google Scholar
57.
Ibrahim A, Lee KY, Kanoo LL, et al. Epidemiology of spinal cord injury in Hospital Kuala Lumpur. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2013;38(5):419-424.
DOI Google Scholar
58.
Chen Y, Tang Y, Vogel LC, Devivo MJ. Causes of spinal cord injury. Top Spinal Cord Inj Rehabil. 2013;19(1):1-8.
DOI Google Scholar
59.
Wu Q, Li YL, Ning GZ, et al. Epidemiology of traumatic cervical spinal cord injury in Tianjin, China. Spinal Cord. 2012;50(10):740-744.
DOI Google Scholar
60.
Hasler RM, Exadaktylos AK, Bouamra O, et al. Epidemiology and predictors of spinal injury in adult major trauma patients: European cohort study. Eur Spine J. 2011;20(12):2174-2180.
DOI Google Scholar
61.
Yousefzadeh Chabok S, Safaee M, Alizadeh A, Ahmadi Dafchahi M, Taghinnejadi O, Koochakinejad L. Epidemiology of traumatic spinal injury: a descriptive study. Acta Med Iran. 2010;48(5):308-311.
Google Scholar
62.
Qureshi MA, Khalique AB, Pasha IF, et al. Epidemiology of non-disaster spinal injuries at a spine unit. J Coll Physicians Surg Pak. 2010;20(10):667-670.
Google Scholar
63.
O’Connor P. Incidence and patterns of spinal cord injury in Australia. Accid Anal Prev. 2002;34(4):405-415.
DOI Google Scholar
Publication history
Copyright
Acknowledgements
Rights and permissions

Publication history

Published: 26 June 2018
Issue date: December 2018

Copyright

© The authors 2018.

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81501899), the State Key Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81330042), the International Cooperation Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China (81620108018), the Special Program for Sino-Russian Joint Research Sponsored by the Ministry of Science and Technology, People’s Republic of China (2014DFR31210), the Key Program Sponsored by the Tianjin Science and Technology Committee, People’s Republic of China (13RCGFSY19000, 14ZCZDSY00044), the Science Foundation of Tianjin Medical University for Young Scholar (2014KYQ01) and the Science Foundation of Tianjin Medical University General Hospital for Young Scholar (ZYYFY2014037).

Rights and permissions

This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited. The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress.com/terms. php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution – Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/). By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms (https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php).

Return