Spinal injuries admitted at the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia over a 10-year period

Abstract

Background: Spinal injury can have devastating effect on an individual from a physical, psychological and socio-economic point of view. It is a calamity in human life and there is a need to reduce the disability that could arise from it.
Aim: To document the experience with spinal injuries at Umuahia.
Methods: A  retrospective study of spinal injury (traumatic and non-traumatic)patients admitted into the wards of Federal Medical Centre Umuahia from 1^st July 1996 to 30^th July   2005, utilizing data from the patients case notes, casualty  and ward registers. Extracted data was analyzed using descriptive statistics
Results: During the period under review, 49 patients met the inclusion criteria. Their ages ranged from 12 to 85 years and there were 40 males and 9 females. There were more traumatic (85.7%) than non-traumatic (14.3%) injuries. The most  common traumatic injuries were motor vehicle accidents and falls from height, while the non-traumatic causes were metastases  from prostate cancer, Pott’s disease of the spine and disc prolapse. No neurological   deficit were noticed in 22.4% but 38.8% had paraplegia and 20.4% had quadriplegia. The most frequently affected vertebrae  were the cervical  and thoracic vertebrae. The treatment was mostly conservative . The most frequent complication were bowel dysfunction, urinary bladder dysfunction , urinary tract infection and pressure ulcers. Ten (20.4%) walked without support, 9(18.4%) discharged against medical advice and 4(8.2%) were discharged on wheel chair. Twenty-two (44.9%) were referred and there were 4 (8.2%) mortalities.
Conclusion: There were more traumatic than non-traumatic injuries. The most common traumatic cause was motor vehicle accidents, while the most common non-traumatic cause was metastases from prostate cancer. There is a need to improve the level of care given to these patients.

Keywords: Spinal injuries, Traumatic, Non-traumatic, Admission, Umuahia