International Lower Urinary Tract Function Data Set: A Study in Spinal Cord Injury Population in HRC

Abstract

Background and aim:  The majority of spinal cord injury (SCI) patients will experience bladder dysfunction, referred to as neurogenic bladder, which results in problems related to storage and release of urine. It is critical for primary care providers to work with patients to develop an effective voiding routine to avoid complications of inadequate bladder management. This study reviews the epidemiology data of spinal cord injury patients with the neurogenic bladder in a rehabilitation hospital. Methods: A retrospective survey involved the opportunistic study of 179 patients with SCI who underwent a urodynamic study. The information was collected using International Lower Urinary Tract Function Basic SCI Data Set and analysed using SPSS version 26. Results: There were 179 SCI patients with neurogenic bladder between 1st January 2016 to 31st December 2020. Predominantly was male (n = 121, 68% ) with the mean age of 37. Majority are paraplegia ( n = 121, 68%). The cause of injury is mainly traumatic (n = 102, 57.3%), with the highest number of incomplete injuries (n = 113, 63.5%) compared to incomplete injury. The majority of them have an awareness of the bladder sensation (n = 128, 71.9%). CISC is the main method of bladder emptying technique used by the patients, which comprise 83 patients (46.6%), followed by normal voiding method (n = 63, 35.4%) and other methods that patients have used are straining (n = 3), involuntary reflex (n = 3) and crede (n = 1). CBD is the main method for 16 patients (9%). The majority of these patients have daily leaking (n = 88, 49.4%), requiring a collecting device (n = 80, 44.9%). Only 28 patients (31.8%) with daily leaking has bladder relaxant on board. A total of 77 (43.3%) of the samples has bladder changes within the last year. Conclusion: This descriptive study provides valuable information for clinicians regarding patients’ bladder management. However, the data collection has ideally been done at a timely follow-up interval to better understand the issues.