Traumatic spinal cord injury in the United States, 1993-2012

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Study assessed trends in national incidence, etiology, health care utilization, and in-hospital mortality in acute traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) from 1993 to 2012. Data from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample databases for the years 1993 through 2012, including a total of 63,109 patients with acute traumatic SCI were analyzed. Results showed that, between 1993 and 2012, the incidence rate of acute traumatic SCI remained relatively stable but, reflecting an increasing population, the total number of cases increased. The largest increase in incidence was observed in older patients, largely associated with an increase in falls, and in-hospital mortality remained high, especially among elderly adults. There was substantial morbidity and mortality during acute inpatient hospital stays among patients with traumatic SCI. There were also increases in the proportion of cases undergoing procedures such as intervertebral disk excision and spinal canal decompression performed during inpatient acute SCI admissions.

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