Incidence and etiology of traumatic spinal cord injury in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from 2010 to 2020: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background: Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a traumatic occurrence that causes motor and sensory deficits for the rest of one's life. Despite many investigators' best attempts to establish genuine therapeutic interactions, traumatic SCI is a traumatic experience after which recovery of function is restricted. Quadriplegia occurs when an injury occurs above the first thoracic vertebra, so both the upper and lower limbs are paralyzed. However, if the lesion occurs below the first thoracic vertebra, paraplegia occurs, and the patient's condition can range from limited lower-limb mobility to total paralysis of both lower limbs. Objective: To determine the incidence rate and etiology of traumatic spinal cord injuries in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from 2010 to 2020. Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study, which was performed at different rehabilitation centers of KPK from September 2010 to November 2020. Patients with traumatic SCI between 2010 and 2020, who were residents of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, were included while patients with other etiology of SCI or residents of other provinces were excluded from the study. Secondary data was collected through self-structured performa. Using SPSS version 23, the collected data was analyzed to obtain the collected data regarding our topic. Results: Total of 2022 patients were included in the study; their mean age was 33.3 years. Males were 1631 patients (80.6%), while females were 319 patients (19.3 %). Fall from the height (33.1 %) was the most common cause of SCI which was followed by RTA (26.8%) and firearm injury (FAI) (21.5 %) respectively. Thoracic (55.29 %) was the most common level injured. Complete injuries were 1588 (78.5 %) and incomplete ones were 429 (21.21 %). Most patients were from Peshawar District (20.7 %). Conclusion: This study concludes that fall from height was the main cause of Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury, followed by road traffic accidents and firearm injuries. Males were at higher risk of Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury.