Journal of Neurotrauma, 2023 · DOI: 10.1089/neu.2022.0496 · Published: December 1, 2023
This study investigates whether patients with acute traumatic spinal cord injuries (tSCI) have a better chance of surviving the first year after injury if they are treated in specialized hospitals compared to non-specialized hospitals. The study looked at data from British Columbia, Canada, between 2001 and 2017 to compare survival rates. Researchers compared the survival of patients with incomplete tSCI who were admitted to a specialized trauma hospital versus those admitted to non-specialized trauma hospitals. They analyzed various factors such as age, severity of the injury, and other health conditions that could affect survival. The study found that overall, there was no significant difference in survival rates between patients treated at specialized and non-specialized hospitals. However, subgroup analyses suggested that younger patients with more severe injuries might benefit from specialized care.
The findings suggest that younger patients with severe polytrauma and incomplete SCI may benefit from treatment at specialized centers, influencing triage and transfer decisions.
The study highlights the need for appropriate resource allocation, potentially prioritizing specialized care for specific patient subgroups to improve survival outcomes.
The results call for more research to determine the specific aspects of specialized care that contribute to improved survival in younger patients with greater polytrauma.