Pediatric spinal injury review of 174 hospital admissions

• Published in: Journal of neurosurgery Vol. 77; no. 5; pp. 700 - 704
• Main Authors: HAMILTON, M. G, TERENCE MYLES, S
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Park Ridge, IL American Association of Neurological Surgeons 01-11-1992
• Subjects: Adolescent; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child, Preschool; Female; Hospitalization; Humans; Infant; Injuries of the nervous system and the skull. Diseases due to physical agents; Male; Medical sciences; Retrospective Studies; Spinal Cord Injuries - epidemiology; Spinal Cord Injuries - physiopathology; Spinal Cord Injuries - therapy; Spinal Injuries - epidemiology; Spinal Injuries - physiopathology; Spinal Injuries - therapy; Traumas. Diseases due to physical agents; Human; Disease of the spine; Nervous system diseases; Spinal cord; Prognosis; Etiology; Spine; Diseases of the osteoarticular system; Spinal cord disease; Child; Trauma
• DOI: 10.3171/jns.1992.77.5.0700
• EISSN: 1933-0693
• ISSN: 0022-3085

Injury to the spinal column and spinal cord occurs relatively infrequently in the pediatric population. A review of 174 pediatric patients is presented, representing 5.4% of all patients admitted with spinal injury. Spinal cord injury was present in 45% of patients. A distinct injury profile, explained by anatomical and biomechanical features, distinguishes the young patient with an immature spine from older adolescents with a more mature, adult-like spine. The younger patients, while less likely to have spinal injury, had a higher incidence of neurological injury, in addition to a higher frequency of both spinal cord injury without radiological abnormality and upper cervical cord injury. In addition, younger patients with spinal cord injury and no radiological abnormality were more likely to have complete or severe cord injury. Prognosis was determined by the severity of spinal cord injury. Patients with complete cord injuries showed little improvement, while patients with incomplete injuries generally fared much better, with 74% showing significant improvement and 59% experiencing a complete recovery of neurological functions. There were six deaths, but none was attributed solely to spinal injury. The authors conclude that outcome is quite good after pediatric spinal cord injury that does not produce a physiologically complete cord deficit.