Journal of neurotrauma
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Journal of neurotrauma · Sep 2023
Trends in the Use of Corticosteroids in the Management of Acute Spinal Cord Injury in North American Clinical Trials Networks (NACTN) Sites.
Immunomodulatory therapeutics represent a potential neuroprotective strategy for the management of acute spinal cord injury (SCI). One of the most intensely debated neuroprotective drugs has been methylprednisolone sodium succinate (MPSS), which was investigated initially for its role in mitigating lipid peroxidation. More recently, the anti-inflammatory/immunomodulatory properties of MPSS have been increasingly appreciated. ⋯ The 2013 AANS/CNS guidelines and preceding literature appeared to have an impact on dramatically lowering the rates of corticosteroid use for acute SCI in NACTN sites after 2009. Of note, this analysis may not reflect the impact of the 2017 AO Spine Clinical Practice guidelines, which suggested the use of methylprednisolone as a valid practice option for acute SCI, especially for cervical injuries. Enhanced patient involvement in the clinical decision-making process and opportunities to personalize SCI management exist in reference to the use of MPSS in acute SCI.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Sep 2023
ReviewThe bulbocavernosus reflex (BCR) has no prognostic features during the acute evaluation of spinal cord injuries.
The bulbocavernosus reflex (BCR) has been used during the initial evaluation of a spinal cord injury patient as a metric to determine prognosis and whether the patient is in "spinal shock." This reflex has been less utilized over the last decade, and therefore a review was performed to assess the value of BCR in patient prognosis. The North American Clinical Trials Network (NACTN) for Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) is a consortium of tertiary medical centers that includes a prospective SCI registry. The NACTN registry data was analyzed to evaluate the prognostic implication of the BCR during the initial evaluation of a spinal cord injury patient. ⋯ In addition, cohorts were not different in surgery decision (p = 0.7762) and injury to surgery time (p = 0.0681). In our review of the NACTN spinal cord registry, the BCR did not provide prognostic utility in the acute evaluation of spinal cord injury patients. Therefore, it should not be used as a reliable marker for predicting neurological outcomes post-injury.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Sep 2023
North American Clinical Trials Network for Spinal Cord Injury Registry: Methodology and Analysis.
The North American Clinical Trials Network (NACTN) for Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) is a consortium of neurosurgery departments at university affiliated hospitals with medical, nursing, and rehabilitation personnel who are skilled in the assessment, evaluation, and management of SCI. NACTN was established with the goal of consistently advancing the quality of life of people with SCI through clinical trials of new therapies that provide robust evidence of safety and effectiveness. ⋯ NACTN's network of hospitals enrolls a significant number of patients, defines and adheres to standard protocols, and provides the infrastructure and highly skilled personnel to conduct trials of therapy for SCI. Registry data have been used by academic institutions and by the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors to create comparison datasets for Phase I clinical trials of new therapies.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Sep 2023
The Evolving Profile of Acute Spinal Cord Injury Demographics, Outcomes and Surgical Treatment in North America: Analysis of a Prospective Multicenter Dataset of 989 Patients.
Changes in demography and injury patterns have altered the profile and outcome of acute spinal cord injury (SCI) over time. This study sought to describe recent trends in epidemiology and early clinical outcomes using the multi-center North American Clinical Trial Network (NACTN) for Spinal Cord Injury Registry. All participants with blunt acute traumatic SCI (n = 782) were grouped into three five-year time intervals from 2005 to 2019 (2005-2009, 2010-2014, and 2015-2019). ⋯ There was a statistically significant increase in cardiac complications (p < 0.0001) and decrease in pulmonary complications (p < 0.0001) during the study period. Data from the NACTN registry shows that the age of participants with acute SCI is increasing, falls have become the major mechanism of injury, and central cord injury is becoming increasingly prevalent. While early surgical intervention for acute SCI is more common in recent years, cardiac complications are more prevalent while pulmonary complications are less prevalent.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Sep 2023
Variability in Early Surgery for Acute Cervical Spinal Cord Injury Patients: An Opportunity for Enhanced Care Delivery.
Data supporting the benefits of early surgical intervention in acute spinal cord injury (SCI) is growing. For early surgery to be accomplished, understanding the causes of variabilities that effect the timing of surgery is needed to achieve this goal. The purpose of this analysis is to determine factors that affect the timing of surgery for acute cervical SCI within the North American Clinical Trials Network (NACTN) for SCI registry. ⋯ In the present study of cervical SCI, NACTN achieved its goal of early surgery in 73.4% of patients from 2005-2019 who arrived within 24 h of their injury. Variability in achieving this goal was related to severity of neurological injury, the day of the week, and the treating NACTN center. Evaluating variations within our network improves understanding of potential systemic limitations and our decision-making process to accomplish the goal of early surgery.