Epidemiological characteristics of traumatic cervical spinal cord injury in Chongqing, China, from 2009 to 2018

Abstract

Study design: Hospital-based retrospective epidemiological research. Objectives: To describe the epidemiological and demographic features of patients with traumatic cervical spinal cord injury in Chongqing, China from 2009 to 2018. Setting: Army Military Medical University Xinqiao Hospital in Chongqing. Methods: All patients diagnosed traumatic CSCI admitted to Xinqiao hospital from 2009 to 2018 were retrospectively reviewed. Data elements referred from the International SCI Core Data Set, included date of birth, date of injury, gender, etiology of injury, vertebral injury, associated injury, ventilatory assistance, and neurological status were collected. Results: A total of 503 patients with TCSCI met the criteria. The mean age of patients with TCSCI was 50.3 ± 13.9 years (15–85 years), and the male-to-female ratio was 4.7:1. Fall (67.2%) was the leading cause of injury, followed by transport (22.3%). The most common neurologic level of injury (NLI) was C5, accounting for 38.2%. The number of AIS D was the largest, accounting for 42%. Conclusions: The results indicated that TCSCI occurred most frequently in the middle age and fall was the leading cause of injury. The number of patients with TCSCI was larger in male than in female. The most common NLI occurred in C5, and AIS D had the largest numbers.