SCI Publications

Study explored women’s experiences of living with spinal cord injury (SCI) and neurogenic bladder and bowel (NBB), a chronic condition hindering the functioning and quality of life of people with SCI. Secondary analysis of semi-structured interviews from a larger qualitative study of 50 women with SCI was conducted. Transcripts ...

Article presents ways to deal with bowel problems after spinal cord injury. Options discussed a bowel program and surgery.

Study evaluated the effects of short-term manipulations in locomotor intensity on gait performance in people with motor incomplete spinal cord injury (iSCI) and investigated potential detrimental effects of high-intensity locomotor training on walking performance. Nineteen individuals with chronic iSCI performed a graded-intensity locomotor exercise task with simultaneous collection of ...

Study identified factors that contribute to variable placebo responses in clinical trials involving individuals with central neuropathic pain. Defined as a reduction in pain in the placebo arm of a clinical trial, the “placebo response” includes the placebo effect (the true psychobiological effects causing a reduction in pain) in addition ...

Study evaluated the validity of the functional ability levels for the Spinal Cord Injury–Functional Index (SCI-FI). Data were collected from 855 individuals with traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) enrolled in 6 rehabilitation centers participating in the National SCI Model Systems Network. Cluster analyses identified three distinct groups that represent ...

Study determined the demographic and clinical profile of people who sustained spinal cord injury (SCI) as a result of accidental falls and documented the usual circumstances surrounding the fall-induced SCI. Participants were 6,408 individuals with traumatic SCI enrolled in 21 SCI Model Systems centers throughout the United States between ...

Study identified strategies for self-advocacy and navigating the health care system as perceived by individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) who report high satisfaction with their primary care, compared to the perceptions of SCI practitioners. Data were obtained through interviews conducted with 7 satisfied consumers with SCI and 4 ...

This article provides an overview of existing spinal cord injury (SCI) clinical research databases, including their purposes, characteristics, and accessibility to users; and presents a vision for future collaborations required for clinical research in SCI. This vision highlights the need for validated and relevant data for longitudinal clinical trials ...

Study examined the relationship between time to rehabilitation after spinal cord injury (SCI) and rehabilitation outcomes at discharge and 1-year postinjury. Participants were 3,937 patients who experienced traumatic SCI between 2000 and 2014, were 18 years or older, and were admitted to a Spinal Cord Injury Model Systems center ...

Study evaluated the immediate effects of transfer training based on the Transfer Assessment Instrument (TAI) on upper-limb biomechanics during transfers. The TAI consist of 2 parts. Part 1 of the TAI divides a transfer into 15 items, each representing a component transfer skill. Part 2 evaluates the consistency of ...

Study evaluated the effects of repeated transfers on ultrasound markers for carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) in people with spinal cord injuries and to relate changes to subject characteristics and transfer skills. Participants were 30 wheelchair users with nonprogressive paraplegia recruited via research registries and at the 2013 National Veterans ...

Study evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of a self-report measure of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in people with spinal cord injury (SCI), and assessed the potential effect of TBI on acute and postacute inpatient rehabilitation outcomes. Step 2 of the Traumatic Brain Injury-4 (TBI-4) interview was used to estimate the ...

Study used musculoskeletal modeling and forward dynamics simulations of manual wheelchair propulsion to identify compensatory strategies to overcome weakness in individual muscle groups and identify specific strategies that may increase injury risk. Identifying these strategies can provide the rationale for the design of targeted rehabilitation programs aimed at preventing ...

      Research Objectives: To determine the effectiveness of a physical activity program on ASIA motor scores and HDL in persons with SCI.         Design: Randomized clinical trial.         Setting: Outpatient hospital setting.         Participants: Inclusion criteria were ≥1 year post-injury, SCI diagnosis, and ages 18-80 years. Those with cognitive deficits preventing learning, medical problems posing health risks, ...

Articles in this special journal issue describe the development and calibration of the item banks for the Spinal Cord Injury – Quality of Life (SCI-QOL) measurement system. Following an introductory overview of the SCI-QOL project, subsequent articles present one or more SCI-QOL item banks and review the included construct, ...

Study investigated whether grief is a psychometrically sound construct that is distinct from depression in individuals who recently sustained a spinal cord injury (SCI). A total of 206 patients with SCI were recruited from inpatient rehabilitation units at 3 SCI Model System sites. Most patients were non-Hispanic whites (85 ...

Article describes the development and psychometric characteristics of the Spinal Cord Injury – Quality of Life (SCI-QOL) Bowel Management Difficulties and Bladder Management Difficulties item banks, and a short scale to measure bladder complications. Using a mixed-methods design, a pool of items assessing bladder and bowel-related concerns were developed using ...

Humans shape their hands to grasp, manipulate objects, and to communicate. Nonhuman primate studies have shown that visual and motor properties for grasps can be derived from cells in the posterior parietal cortex (PPC). This study showed for the first time how single neurons in the PPC of humans ...

Article describes the development and psychometric properties of the Spinal Cord Injury-Quality of Life (SCI-QOL) Ability to Participate in Social Roles and Activities and Satisfaction with Social Roles and Activities item banks and short forms. Focus groups helped define the constructs; cognitive interviews helped revise items; and confirmatory factor ...

Study examined the prevalence of pregnancy and associations with sociodemographic and clinical factors among women with spinal cord injury (SCI) enrolled in the United States (US) National SCI Database (NSCID). The NSCID collects data from patients receiving services at SCI Model Systems centers at years 1 and 5 and then ...