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Background: Violence is the third leading cause of spinal cord injury (SCI) in the United States, and people with violence-related SCI have worse long-term outcomes compared to other traumatic SCI etiologies. Little is known, however, about the underlying reasons for these differences. Access to and utilization of rehabilitation services may differ in this population, but their outpatient care has not been previously investigated., Objective: To evaluate differences in utilization patterns of outpatient rehabilitation services between people with violence-related SCI and other traumatic SCI etiologies., Design: Retrospective cohort study., Setting: Academic tertiary care hospital system., Patients: A total of 41 patients with violence-related SCI residing in King County at the time of injury who completed inpatient rehabilitation (IPR) in our institution were identified from the hospital trauma registry and matched with 41 control patients with nonviolent traumatic SCI., Interventions: Not applicable., Main Outcome Measure(s): The number of appointments attended, canceled, and missed during the first year after discharge from IPR were obtained by chart review for physical medicine & rehabilitation (PM&R) physicians and therapy services., Results: People with violence-related SCI had decreased follow-up with outpatient rehabilitation services after IPR discharge compared to non-violent traumatic SCI, including PM&R (2.50 ± 2.44 vs. 3.76 ± 2.21 visits, β = -1.28, p = .017), physical therapy (8.91 ± 11.02 vs. 17.57 ± 15.26, β = -9.79, p = .009), occupational therapy (4.28 ± 7.90 vs. 10.04 ± 14.42, β = -6.18, p = .033), and recreational therapy (0.293 ± 0.955 vs. 1.37 ± 2.86, β = -1.07, p = .035). The rate of missed appointments was also higher among people with violence-related SCI compared to controls for PM&R (25.2% ± 28.5% vs. 9.9% ± 16.5%, β = 14.6%, p = .014) and physical therapy (26.0% ± 32.0% vs 4.2% ± 13.2%, β = 22.1%, p = .009)., Conclusions: Individuals with violence-related SCI had fewer follow-up appointments with PM&R physicians and other allied health professionals and were more likely to miss scheduled appointments compared to other traumatic SCI etiologies. Decreased outpatient follow-up may affect long-term outcomes for people with violence-related SCI., (© 2023 American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.)

Objective: To determine the positive predictive value (PPV) of a sepsis-screening protocol in patients with cervical spinal cord injury (SCI)., Design/method: Retrospective review of all patients with cervical SCI who screened positive for two or more systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) criteria while hospitalized in acute care or inpatient rehabilitation units over a 3.5-year period. Sepsis was defined by the occurrence of (1) any culture order followed by an intravenous (IV) antibiotic within 72 hours or (2) an IV antimicrobial followed by a culture order within 24 hours., Results: A total of 134 patients screened positive for two or more SIRS criteria. Of these, 36 patients (26.9%) were diagnosed with sepsis. Factors associated with a true-positive SIRS screen on multivariable analysis included American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale (AIS) grade A-C (vs. D; p < .001). The PPV of the screen was 38% in patients with AIS A-C and 9% in patients with AIS D. Altered mental status (AMS) was strongly associated with a diagnosis of sepsis; 16 of 18 (88.9%) of those with AMS had sepsis (p < .001). Age, sex, and neurologic level of injury were not associated with true-positive screening. For patients with new SCI, the first true-positive screen occurred a median of 31 days post-injury. The most common SIRS criteria combinations in patients with true-positive screens were elevated heart rate and either abnormal white blood cell count (43% of true positives) or abnormal temperature (26% of true positives). Abnormally low body temperature (<36°C) contributed to false-positive screening for 10 of 38 (26%) AIS D patients who screened positive., Conclusion: Sepsis screening using SIRS criteria in hospitalized patients with tetraplegia has a PPV of 26.9%; it is significantly higher in patients with AIS A-C versus D injuries. AMS, when combined with a positive SIRS screening, is strongly associated with sepsis., (© 2022 American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.)

Background: Pregnant women with congenital or acquired spinal cord injury face challenges due to compromised neurologic function and mobility, factors that may also affect fetal/infant health. Few studies have examined pregnancy course and longer-term outcomes in this population., Objective: To assess pregnancy outcomes among women with spinal cord injury, paralysis, or spina bifida using population-based data., Design: Retrospective cohort study., Setting: Washington state linked birth-hospital discharge records., Participants: All women (N = 529) with spinal cord injury, paralysis, or spina bifida with singleton live birth deliveries 1987-2012, and a comparison group of women without disabilities (N = 5282)., Methods: Diagnosis codes were screened to identify cases and a 10:1 random sample of comparison women. Relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated overall and separately for each condition using multivariable regression. Subsequent hospitalizations or death were identified via linkage to hospital discharge/death records for 2 years after delivery., Main Outcome Measurements: Pregnancy course (weight gain, gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, infection, venous thromboembolism), delivery/labor characteristics, infant characteristics (birthweight/size, gestational age), and longer-term outcomes (occurrence/reasons for maternal/infant rehospitalization, mortality)., Results: Women with these spinal conditions had increased adjusted risks of prenatal urinary tract infection/pyelonephritis (RR 26.43, 95% CI 13.97-49.99), venous thromboembolism (RR 9.16, 95% CI 2.17-38.60), preterm rupture of membranes (RR 2.15, 95% CI 1.18-3.90), and cesarean delivery (RR 1.88, 95% CI 1.70-2.09). They had longer hospitalizations and increased rehospitalization (RR 1.54, 95% CI 1.28-1.87), including for postpartum depression (RR 8.15, 4.29-15.48) or injury (RR 13.05, 95% CI 6.60-25.81). Their infants were more often small for gestational age (RR 1.65, 95% CI 1.33-2.06), but had no increased risk of rehospitalization or death., Conclusions: We observed no increased long-term morbidity among infants of women with these conditions. Possible increased maternal morbidities during the first postpartum years indicate areas for intervention., Level of Evidence: III., (© 2019 American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.)

Spinal arachnoiditis is a known but very rare late complication of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Since 1943, 17 cases of spinal arachnoiditis after intracranial hemorrhage have been reported internationally. The vast majority of these cases were related to aneurysmal SAH. All previously published cases have involved spinal arachnoiditis at the cervical and thoracic levels. In this report, we present an adult woman with lumbar spinal arachnoiditis causing cauda equina syndrome as a result of posterior circulation aneurysmal SAH. We believe this is the first reported case of this specific condition causing cauda equina syndrome., (Copyright © 2013 American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To define the prevalence of testosterone deficiency in persons with chronic spinal cord injury (SCI) and to identify factors associated with this deficiency., Design: Cross-sectional study., Setting: A U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs SCI unit., Participants: Participants (n = 60) included male veterans completing annual evaluations from July 2006 to April 2007., Methods: In addition to routine annual evaluation laboratory examination, which included measurements of serum albumin levels, participants underwent measurements of serum total testosterone, luteinizing hormone, follicle stimulating hormone, and prolactin levels. Outcome measures included the prevalence of testosterone deficiency (defined as total serum testosterone <325 ng/dL) and the relationship of testosterone level with participant's age, serum albumin level, narcotic medication use, time since injury, American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale (AIS) grade, and neurologic level of injury., Results: A low serum testosterone level (<325 ng/dL) was detected in 43.3% of participants. The testosterone level was significantly associated with severity of injury as defined by AIS grade (t = -2.59, P = .012). The prevalence of testosterone deficiency was significantly greater in participants with motor complete (AIS A and B) injuries compared with those with motor incomplete (AIS C, D, and E) injuries. Testosterone levels were significantly lower in participants who were taking narcotic medications for pain management (t = -0.25, P < .05). There was no relationship between the use of narcotic medications and severity of injury. Given the small number of participants, the SCI levels, age, duration of injuries, serum albumin levels, and serum levels of luteinizing hormone, follicle stimulating hormone, and prolactin did not reach statistical significance in predicting testosterone level., Conclusions: These findings confirm both a substantial population of men with SCI and with testosterone deficiency, and a significant association between testosterone level and severity of SCI. Measuring serum total testosterone levels should be included in standard screenings for patients with SCI, particularly those with motor complete injuries., (Copyright © 2011 American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)