Costs of care following spinal cord injury

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to develop new estimates of the costs of care following spinal cord injury in the United States. Information from the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center database was supplemented where necessary with estimates from a previous comprehensive study of lifetime costs updated for inflation to 2009 US dollars. Overall mean first-year charges were $523,089. Mean annual charges over the remainder of life were $79,759. Charges varied substantially by injury severity. These estimates are considerably higher than the inflation-adjusted estimates from our previous study. © 2011 Thomas Land Publishers, Inc.