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Review
. 2020 Dec 18;11(12):573-583.
doi: 10.5312/wjo.v11.i12.573.

Management of acute spinal cord injury: A summary of the evidence pertaining to the acute management, operative and non-operative management

Darren Sandean  1
Affiliations
Review

Management of acute spinal cord injury: A summary of the evidence pertaining to the acute management, operative and non-operative management

Darren Sandean. World J Orthop. .

Abstract

Acute traumatic spinal cord injury is often a lifechanging and devastating event with considerable mortality and morbidity. Over half a million people suffer from traumatic spinal cord injury annually with the majority resulting from road traffic accidents or falls. The Individual, societal and economic costs are enormous. Initial recognition and treatment of acute traumatic spinal cord injury are crucial to limit secondary injury to the spinal cord and to provide patients with the best chance of some functional recovery. This article is an overview of the management of the acute traumatic spinal cord injury patient presenting to the emergency department. We review the initial assessment, criteria for imaging and clearing the spine, and evaluate the literature to determine the optimum timing of surgery and the role of non-surgical treatment in patients presenting with acute spinal cord injury.

Keywords: Acute management; Spinal cord transection; Spinal fracture; Traumatic myelopathy; Traumatic spinal cord injury; Vertebral fracture.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict-of-interest statement: The author has no conflict of interest to declare.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Canadian C-Spine rule. GCS: Glasgow Coma Scale.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Subaxial Cervical Spine Injury Classification System[38].
Figure 4
Figure 4
Thoracolumbar injury classification score[37].
Figure 5
Figure 5
Spinal cord injury evaluation.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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