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Abstract Background Spinal cord injury (SCI) results in severe, permanent functional changes and has become a global health priority due to its high incidence, cost, and disability rate. Current national epidemiological data on SCI in China are limited and outdated. This study aimed to provide a comprehensive, national cross-sectional investigation of SCI epidemiology in China. Methods This cross-sectional study included 3055 SCI participants aged 8 to 78 years, conducted from May to September 2023. Data collected encompassed demographic characteristics, employment status, etiology, years lived with disability (YLD), family structure, caregiving status, income, health insurance, paralysis type, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Descriptive statistics analyses were used to assess demographic and injury characteristics. Group differences were assessed using t-tests, one-way ANOVA and Chi-square tests. Significant factors were examined using multivariate regression analysis. Results The majority (88.9%) of respondents were aged 15 to 59 years, with a male-to-female ratio of 2.36:1. Car accidents caused 45.4% of tetraplegia cases, falls caused 35.9% of paraplegia cases, and myelitis was the leading cause of non-traumatic SCI. Among paraplegia participants, 65.5% had complete SCI, while 53.1% of tetraplegia participants had incomplete SCI. Functional improvement was reported by 9.58% of participants. Half (50.3%) of the respondents were unemployed, and 75% had incomes below the national average. HRQoL was significantly lower in the SCI population compared to controls, mainly influenced by injury site, income, age and etiology (p

Abstract Low back pain (LBP) is a highly prevalent disease. Among the various causes of LBP, one of the most frequent is myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) which affects the spinal stabilizer muscles. The aims of this study were to compare the differences in muscular electrical activity and biomechanical properties between the painful and non-painful sides in patients with unilateral MPS and to verify the feasibility of surface electromyography (sEMG) and MyotonPRO for assisting in MPS assessment. Forty patients with unilateral lumbar MPS were recruited via the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine Center of West China Hospital Sichuan University from October 2022 to October 2023. The electrical properties of the bilateral erector spinae muscles were characterized by sEMG signals during a trunk extension task. The following four time-domain features of sEMG were extracted: root mean square (RMS), mean absolute value (MAV), integrated EMG (iEMG), and waveform length (WL). And two frequency domain features were extracted: the median frequency (MDF) and mean power frequency (MPF). The mechanical properties of the muscles were assessed by MyotonPRO at rest. The following biomechanical parameters were acquired: oscillation frequency [Hz], dynamic stiffness [N/m], logarithmic decrement, relaxation time [ms], and Creep. The visual analog scale (VAS) was used to evaluate the pain severity, and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) was used to evaluate the severity of disability and disruption to lifestyle activities caused by LBP pain. The outcome measures were obtained prior to the Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) treatment and repeated two weeks after treatment. (1) Prior to the PRP treatment, all sEMG time-domain features on the painful side were significantly higher than those on the non-painful side (RMS, p 0.05). (2) Two weeks after the PRP treatment, statistically significant decreases were observed in both post-treatment VAS (p

ObjectivesPain is considered a common symptom in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). However, the results of studies on pain in ALS are limited and inconsistent. The aim of our study was to comprehensively evaluate the potential factors of pain and effects on quality of life (QoL) in patients with ALS from China.Participants and MethodsPatients were eligible if they fulfilled the criteria of probable and definitive ALS according to the revised El Escorial criteria. Pain was assessed by the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI). Disease severity, sleep quality, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and quality of life (QoL) were evaluated in ALS patients by the ALS Functional Rating Scale-revised (ALSFRS-R) and ALS severity scale (ALSSS), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS), Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) and McGill Quality of Life Questionnaire (MQOL). Then, the clinical characteristics of ALS patients with pain were compared with those without pain. Last, associated factors of pain, as well as impact on QoL in Chinese ALS patients, were assessed.ResultsA total of 86 ALS patients were included. ALS patients with pain tended to have higher FSS scores and poorer QoL. The FSS score and ALSSS [lower extremity (LE) + upper extremity (UE)] were associated with pain in ALS patients. The ALS Functional Rating Scale-revised (ALSFRS-R), Pain Severity Index (PSI), HARS and HDRS scores were significantly associated with both the physical and psychological domains of QoL.ConclusionOur study was the first to comprehensively evaluate factors associated with pain in Chinese ALS patients, finding that fatigue can be a risk factor for pain and ALSSS (LE + UE) score was related with pain intensity. Additionally, we identified the adverse effects of ALSSS (LE + UE), HARS and HDRS scores on QoL in Chinese ALS patients.

ObjectivesFatigue was considered as a common symptom in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Previous studies about the impact of fatigue on Quality of Life (QoL) in patients with ALS were limited and inconsistent. Besides, a systematic investigation of fatigue in Chinese patients with ALS was lacking. Therefore, this study aimed to comprehensively evaluate the frequency and associated factors of fatigue and impact on QoL in Chinese patients with ALS.Participants and MethodsProbable and definitive patients with ALS and age- and gender-matched healthy controls (HCs) were consecutively recruited. The frequency of fatigue between both the groups was determined by the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS). Disease severity, sleep quality, sleepiness, anxiety, depression, and QoL were evaluated in patients with ALS by the ALS Functional Rating Scale-revised (ALSFRS-R) and the ALS Severity Scale (ALSSS), the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS), the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), and the McGill Quality of Life Questionnaire (MQOL). Then, clinical characteristics of patients with ALS with fatigue were compared with those without fatigue. Lastly, associated factors of fatigue and impact on QoL in Chinese patients with ALS were assessed.ResultsA total of 175 patients with ALS and 175 HCs were included. Fatigue was significantly more frequent in patients with ALS than in controls (32.6 vs. 17.7%, p = 0.001). Patients with ALS with fatigue scored lower on the ALSFRS-R, the ALSSS [lower extremity (LE) + upper extremity (UE)], the total ALSSS, higher in the HARS, HDRS, PSQI, ESS scores, and a poorer QoL. Daytime dysfunction and the ALSSS (LE + UE) score were associated with a higher risk of fatigue. The ALSSS (LE + UE), the FSS, age, the HARS, and the HDRS score were significantly associated with various aspects of QoL.ConclusionThis study has described fatigue in Chinese patients with ALS and finding daytime dysfunction and the lower ALSSS (LE + UE) were associated with a higher risk of fatigue. Also, we identified an inverse relationship of fatigue intensity with the psychological domain of QoL.