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Diagnostics
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Spinal Cord Injury: Diagnostics, Treatment, and Rehabilitation
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Spinal Cord Injury: Diagnostics, Treatment, and Rehabilitation

A special issue of Diagnostics (ISSN 2075-4418). This special issue belongs to the section "Pathology and Molecular Diagnostics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2023) | Viewed by 3419

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Beata Tarnacka

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Rehabilitation, Eleonora Reicher National Institute of Geriatrics, Rheumatology and Rehabilitation, Rehabilitation Clinic, Medical University of Warsaw, Spartańska 1, 02-637 Warsaw, Poland
Interests: spinal cord injury; rehabilitation medicine; neurodegenerative disorders; peripheral nervous system

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Spinal cord injuries (SCIs) cause serious disabilities in patients. Every year, about 40 million people worldwide suffer from SCIs. The most common causes of SCI are traffic accidents, falls and sports injuries. Injury is usually caused by flexion or hyperextension and flexion–rotation mechanisms.

SCIs not only cause abnormalities in neurological and physical function, but also many complications, such as pain, pulmonary and cardiovascular problems, neurogenic bladder and bowel with urinary tract infections, orthostatic hypotension, pressure ulcers, deep-vein thrombosis, heterotrophic ossification, spasticity, autonomic dysreflexia, etc. These complications may influence the patient’s life expectancy and quality of life. The treatment and rehabilitation of patients with spinal cord injury may take many years; it starts shortly after the injury and is often lifelong. In addition, the clinical screening, differential diagnosis and prognosis of spinal cord injury are worthy of our research focus.

We invite you to contribute to our Special Issue entitled "Spinal Cord Injury: Diagnostics, Treatment, and Rehabilitation".

Dr. Beata Tarnacka
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Diagnostics is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • spinal cord injury
  • complications
  • rehabilitation
  • physiotherapy
  • treatment
  • clinical assessment
  • robotic therapy
  • clinical screening
  • differential diagnosis
  • prognosis
  • psychological problems

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 1093 KiB  
Article
Can the Initial Parameters of Functional Scales Predict Recovery in Patients with Complete Spinal Cord Injury? A Retrospective Cohort Study
by Krzysztof Wasiak, Justyna Frasuńska and Beata Tarnacka
Diagnostics 2024, 14(2), 129; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics14020129 - 06 Jan 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 780
Abstract
Regaining greater independence in performing daily activities constitutes a priority for people with tetraplegia following spinal cord injury (SCI). The highest expectations are connected with the improvement of hand function. Therefore, it is so important for the clinician to identify reliable and commonly [...] Read more.
Regaining greater independence in performing daily activities constitutes a priority for people with tetraplegia following spinal cord injury (SCI). The highest expectations are connected with the improvement of hand function. Therefore, it is so important for the clinician to identify reliable and commonly applicable prognostic factors for functional improvement. The aim of this study was to conduct an analysis to assess the impact of initial functional factors on the clinical improvement in patients during early neurological rehabilitation (ENR). This study assessed 38 patients with complete SCI aged 17–78 who underwent ENR in 2012–2022. The analysis included the motor score from the AIS (MS), the Barthel Index (BI) and the SCIM scale values at the beginning of the ENR program and after its completion. During ENR, patients achieved a statistically significant improvement in MS, BI and SCIM. The initial MS and the level of neurological injury constituted the predictors of functional improvement during ENR. Significant statistical relationships were observed primarily in the correlations between the initial MS and BI, and the increase in the analyzed functional scales of SCI patients. Higher initial MS may increase the chances of a greater and faster functional improvement during ENR. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spinal Cord Injury: Diagnostics, Treatment, and Rehabilitation)
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15 pages, 2056 KiB  
Article
Impact of Robotic-Assisted Gait Training in Subacute Spinal Cord Injury Patients on Outcome Measure
by Beata Tarnacka, Bogumił Korczyński and Justyna Frasuńska
Diagnostics 2023, 13(11), 1966; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics13111966 - 05 Jun 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1620
Abstract
The improvement of walking ability is a primary goal for spinal cord injury (SCI) patients. Robotic-assisted gait training (RAGT) is an innovative method for its improvement. This study evaluates the influence of RAGT vs. dynamic parapodium training (DPT) in improving gait motor functions [...] Read more.
The improvement of walking ability is a primary goal for spinal cord injury (SCI) patients. Robotic-assisted gait training (RAGT) is an innovative method for its improvement. This study evaluates the influence of RAGT vs. dynamic parapodium training (DPT) in improving gait motor functions in SCI patients. In this single-centre, single-blinded study, we enrolled 105 (39 and 64 with complete and incomplete SCI, respectively) patients. The investigated subjects received gait training with RAGT (experimental S1-group) and DPT (control S0-group), with six training sessions per week over seven weeks. The American Spinal Cord Injury Association Impairment Scale Motor Score (MS), Spinal Cord Independence Measure, version-III (SCIM-III), Walking Index for Spinal Cord Injury, version-II (WISCI-II), and Barthel Index (BI) were assessed in each patient before and after sessions. Patients with incomplete SCI assigned to the S1 rehabilitation group achieved more significant improvement in MS [2.58 (SE 1.21, p < 0.05)] and WISCI-II [3.07 (SE 1.02, p < 0.01])] scores in comparison with patients assigned to the S0 group. Despite the described improvement in the MS motor score, no progression between grades of AIS (A to B to C to D) was observed. A nonsignificant improvement between the groups for SCIM-III and BI was found. RAGT significantly improved gait functional parameters in SCI patients in comparison with conventional gait training with DPT. RAGT is a valid treatment option in SCI patients in the subacute phase. DPT should not be recommended for patients with incomplete SCI (AIS-C); in those patients, RAGT rehabilitation programs should be taken into consideration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spinal Cord Injury: Diagnostics, Treatment, and Rehabilitation)
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Review

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9 pages, 236 KiB  
Review
Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy—Diagnostics and Clinimetrics
by Józef Opara and Martyna Odzimek
Diagnostics 2024, 14(5), 556; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics14050556 - 06 Mar 2024
Viewed by 711
Abstract
Cervical myelopathy is referred to in many ways in the English literature, for example, as cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM), spondylotic radiculomyelopathy (SRM) or degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM). In addition, more frequent occurrences are noted in older adults [...] Read more.
Cervical myelopathy is referred to in many ways in the English literature, for example, as cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM), spondylotic radiculomyelopathy (SRM) or degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM). In addition, more frequent occurrences are noted in older adults and to a greater extent in men. The causes of the effects of cervical myelopathy may be the appearance of lesions on the spinal cord, ischemia due to compression of the vertebral artery and repeated micro-injuries during maximal movements—hyperflexion or hyperextension. It is well known that lesions on the spinal cord may occur in a quarter of the population, and this problem is clearly noted in people over 60 years old. The symptoms of SCM develop insidiously, and their severity and side (unilateral or bilateral) are associated with the location and extent of spinal cord compression. Neurological examination most often diagnoses problems in the upper limbs (most often paresis with developing hand muscle atrophy), pyramidal paralysis in one or both lower limbs and disorders in the urinary system. To make a diagnosis of CSM, it is necessary to perform MRI and neurophysiological tests (such as EMG or sensory and/or motor-evoked potentials). The use of appropriately selected scales and specific tests in diagnostics is also crucial. This narrative review article describes the latest knowledge on the diagnosis and clinimetrics of cervical spondylotic myelopathy in adults and provides future directions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spinal Cord Injury: Diagnostics, Treatment, and Rehabilitation)
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