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Article provides strategies and tools for people with spinal cord injury (SCI) to use to manage stress. It defines stress, describes its impact on the mind and body, and discusses ways to ease its effects.

Article describes the effects of cold-weather temperatures on the body temperatures of people with spinal cord injury (SCI). Generally, after SCI, body temperature had a tendency to take on the temperature of the environment. Author offers advice for how to keep warm.

Article discusses the use of manual therapy to treat musculoskeletal following spinal cord injury. Treatment includes specific exercises and movements to stretch joints and soft tissues, as opposed to exercises that build strength. Tips are offered for finding a therapist certified to administer manual therapy. ...

Article describes changes to the spinal cord following spinal cord injury (SCI). These changes usually involve scarring of the cord, referred to as tethering, or the development of a fluid-filled space, or cyst, above or below the level of the original injury. Signs and symptoms and treatment for spinal-cord ...

Self-directed learning module on the documentation of acute, subacute, and chronic pain. Topics in the module include: self-report tools; physical and functional tools; expert testimony; and medicolegal aspects. This module is part of the chapter on pain in the Self-Directed Physiatric Education Program for practitioners and trainees in physical ...

Study examined the interrater reliability of the Bryce/Ragnarsson spinal cord injury (SCI) pain taxonomy (BR-SCI-PT). Thirty-nine physicians specializing in SCI evaluated 135 vignettes, each of which described a person with SCI with one or more different etiologic subtypes of pain. Physician classifications were compared with those made by the ...

Article reviews various measures of pain and pain treatments and examines their usefulness in clinical trials on pain after spinal cord injury (SCI). Authors conclude that sufficient knowledge does exist on SCI pain and its measurement to make treatment progress possible.

Study examining demographic and injury factors associated with hospital charges for persons with new spinal cord injury (SCI). The objectives were (1) to describe the distribution of charges, (2) to determine which demographic and injury characteristics are associated with charge outlier status, and (3) to identify a model that ...

Study examined the demographic characteristics, incidence rates, and functional outcomes of minority patients with traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI). Information was collected on admission to and discharge from acute care and inpatient rehabilitation units. Analysis of the data indicated that violence is the leading single cause of SCI in ...

Study examining differences by sex in the occurrence of postacute secondary complications following spinal cord injury (SCI). Participants were 2,618 individuals 1 year post-injury, and 6,090 individuals 5 years and more post-injury. A sub-group of the second group included 78 individuals 10 years and more post-injury. Men with SCI were ...

Article discussing issues related to the role of specialists in physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) as primary care providers for persons with disabilities. Topics include: the meaning of primary care; "state of the art" in primary care for persons with disabilities; survey data on physiatrists' interest in being primary ...

Study describes the outcomes of individuals with high tetraplegia who were 14 to 24 years postinjury and were interviewed at 3 time periods after injury. The outcome measures examined included demographics, characteristics of personal assistance care, psychosocial variables, and time utilization. Results indicated that participants appeared to be functioning ...

Study of the perceived sexual health needs of newly injured persons with spinal cord injury (SCI). Data are from a survey of 42 newly injured persons just prior to discharge from a model SCI center's inpatient rehabilitation program. Results suggest that inpatients underestimate the impact SCI may have on ...

Study compared the efficacy of the Ilfeld Psychiatric Symptom Index to the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale in identifying depressive symptoms in people with spinal cord injury (SCI). Thirty-nine subjects SCI and 20 age-matched control subjects completed both screening measures and total scores for both scales were analyzed. Results showed ...

Study evaluated the effectiveness of a computer-assisted instruction program to improve the spinal cord injury knowledge base of fourth-year medical students. Effectiveness was determined based on pretest and posttest scores and overall user satisfaction assessments. Results indicated that mean posttest scores were significantly higher than mean pretest scores. Course ...

Study examined gender and minority differences in the prevalence and severity of pain in people with spinal cord injury (SCI) as reported in follow-up surveys. Pain prevalence ranged from 81 percent at 1 year post injury to 82.7 percent at 25 years. Pain prevalence was significantly lower among non-whites, ...

Data from 8,668 people with spinal cord injury (SCI) were analyzed to determine the frequency and reasons for rehospitalizations reported during the 1st, 5th, 10th, 15th, and 20th follow-up years. Study also examined the association between rehospitalization and demographics, neurologic category, payer sources, length of stay, discharge functional status, ...

Study participants were asked whether they had ever received any 1 of 26 different pain treatments, including 10 oral medications, 8 other standard pain treatment modalities, 7 alternative pain treatments, or any other treatment for pain. Participants also indicated the amount of relief each treatment provided and the length ...

The purpose of this study is to (1) test the interrater reliability of a classification system for chronic pain in people with spinal cord injuries and (2) determine the frequency and characteristics of various types of pain categorized by this system. Two investigators categorized pain independently based on responses ...

Study assessed whether amitriptyline, a tricyclic antidepressant, is effective in relieving chronic pain and improving pain-related physical and psychosocial dysfunction in people with spinal cord injury (SCI). Eighty-four participants with SCI and chronic pain were randomized to a 6-week trial of amitriptyline or an active placebo, benztropine mesylate. All ...