Healthcare utilization following spinal cord injury: Objective findings from a regional hospital registry

This study looks at how often people with spinal cord injuries (SCI) use healthcare services after they are first injured. It uses data from a large hospital system to track their hospital visits and emergency room visits in the year after their injury. The study found that a large number of people with SCI had to go back to the hospital or emergency room in the year after their initial injury. The most common reasons for these visits were problems like pressure ulcers, infections, and bowel or bladder issues. Understanding why people with SCI need to use healthcare services so often can help doctors and hospitals create programs to prevent these problems and improve the quality of life for people with SCI.

• 1
  58% of SCI patients had additional inpatient or emergency healthcare utilization within the first year after their initial hospitalization.
• 2
  The most frequent diagnosis codes for inpatient hospitalization readmission in individuals with tetraplegia were chronic ulcer of the skin (47%), disorders of fluid electrolyte and acid–base balance (43%), functional digestive disorders not elsewhere classified (39%), and essential hypertension (38%).
• 3
  The most frequent diagnosis codes for emergency visits among individuals with tetraplegia were nondependent abuse of drugs (38%), of which 63% were tobacco use disorder and essential hypertension (30%).