Overall Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury Rate Remains Stable

According to a study recently published in the journal JAMA, between 1993 and 2012, the incidence rate of acute traumatic spinal cord injury remained relatively stable in the U.S., although there was an increase among older adults due to falls. Despite the substantial effects of this type of injury on health-related quality of life and health-care spending, contemporary data on trends in incidence, causes and medical care are limited. The total study sample consisted of 63,109 patients with acute traumatic spinal cord injury. The actual number of cases in the U.S. Nationwide Inpatient Sample database increased from 2,659 in 1993 to 3,393 in 2012. The incidence rate for acute traumatic spinal cord injury remained relatively stable, estimated at 53 cases per 1 million persons in 1993 and 54 cases per 1 million persons in 2012. The percentage of spinal cord injury associated with falls increased significantly from 28 percent (in 1997-2000) to 66 percent (in 2010-2012) in those 65 years or older. “This is a major public health issue and it likely represents the more active 65- to 84-year-old U.S. population currently compared with the 1990s, which increases the risk of falls in this age group. This issue may be further compounded in the future because of the aging population in the United States,” said a senior author of the study. To read more about this study, click here.