Assessing an Online Patient Decision Aid about Upper Extremity Reconstructive Surgery for Cervical Spinal Cord Injury: Pilot Testing Knowledge, Decisional Conflict, and Acceptability

MDM Policy & Practice, 2023 · DOI: 10.1177/23814683231199721 · Published: July 30, 2023

Spinal Cord Injury Patient Experience Orthopedics

Simple Explanation

People with cervical spinal cord injuries often want to improve their upper body function, but they don't always have access to information about treatment options. A patient decision aid (PtDA) was created to address this issue. The PtDA provides information about recovery after spinal cord injury and the role of traditional tendon and newer nerve transfer surgery to improve upper extremity upper extremity function. A study was done to see if the PtDA improved knowledge and decreased decisional conflict (difficulty in making decisions) in individuals with spinal cord injuries. The PtDA was found to be helpful.

Study Duration

August 2021 and September 2022

Participants

42 adults with midcervical spinal cord injury

Evidence Level

Not specified

Key Findings

1
Participants had a 20% increase in knowledge after using the PtDA.
2
The number of participants experiencing decisional conflict decreased after viewing the PtDA.
3
Acceptability of the PtDA was high among participants.

Research Summary

This study evaluated a newly developed online patient decision aid (PtDA) for individuals with cervical spinal cord injury considering upper extremity reconstructive surgery. The PtDA improved participants' knowledge of treatment options and reduced decisional conflict. Participants found the PtDA useful and provided suggestions for improvement, such as adding more details about specific surgeries and outcomes.

Practical Implications

Improved Information Access

The PtDA can help people with spinal cord injuries better understand their treatment options.

Reduced Decisional Conflict

By providing clear and balanced information, the PtDA can make it easier for patients to make informed decisions about surgery.

Clinical Implementation

Future work should focus on integrating the PtDA into clinical practice to improve access to care.

Study Limitations

1
The study was conducted virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2
Most participants were older than the general population with a new spinal cord injury.
3
The knowledge survey has not been previously validated.

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