Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury: The substantial role of imaging methods

Background and aims: One of the most common injuries around the world is the traumatic injury of the spine and spinal cord with unknown worldwide situation of traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI) affecting on the effectiveness of preventive policy programs. In addition, because of possibility of making paralysis, the potential injury to the spine could be one of the most important traumas and a major cause of disability. Methods: This research is a review study. Initial studies had focused on the descriptive epidemiology, considering incidence rates, age, gender, race, etiology and level and completeness of injury, but the recent researches are focusing on identifying of the high-risk groups, making awareness, establishing trends, predicting the needs, and thus contributing to effective health care planning of this condition. Results: An important part of the prognosis, diagnosis and management of acute and chronic spinal trauma could be diagnostic medical imaging. While spinal cord and soft-tissue injuries could be evaluated better by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); spine fractures could be characterized better by computed tomography (CT). Conclusion: Imaging using CT and MRI is essential in the management of acute/chronic spinal cord injuries. The problem could be that due to fear of clinicians from missing occult spine injuries, they ask radiographs for almost all injured patients. It is recommended that a National Registry for spinal cord injuries be established by the national Ministry of Health, so that the etiological pattern of spinal cord injuries in the world can be known.