Nurick Grades and Quality of Life Outcome in Cervical and Lumbar Spine Pathologies: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: It is not known to what extent differences in radiological findings of individuals with spinal pathologies may be associated with their quality of life (QOL) and the degree of disabilities. Objective: This study aimed at determining if QoL and degree of disabilities differs in individuals with cervical and lumbar spine pathology with different magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings. Methods: This cross-sectional study of 185 purposively sampled patients was carried out at Radiological facilities in Rivers State, Nigeria. Magnetic resonance images were assessed for pathological findings, Nurick grade scales and Short Form Health survey (SF-36) QoL questionnaire were used to assess participant’s disability grade and QoL respectively. Results: Majority of the participants with cervical (n=49, 64%) and lumbar (n=86, 79.8%) spine pathologies were males. Degenerative spine pathology was the most common in both the cervical (75%) and lumbar (80.7%) spine regions. The patients with cervical (n=30, 39.5%) and lumbar (n=56, 50.5%) spine pathologies had Nurick grade I and Nurick grade II respectively. There were statistically significant differences in the physical functioning domain (k=12.27, p = 0.03) and role limitations due to emotional problem domain (k= 13.03, p = 0.02) among individuals with different Nurick grades. Conclusion: Males were commonly affected by the spinal pathologies. Degenerative spinal pathology was the most common in both the cervical and lumbar spine regions. The most prevalent degree of disabilities associated with cervical and/or lumbar spine pathologies was Nurick grade I and II respectively. Keywords: Disabilities, Pathology, Quality of life