Care and services for spinal injured people with,and without,neurological deficit

Purpose : To describe the care and service usage characteristics of the spinal injured (SI) population of New South Wales (NSW), Australia, including people without significant permanent neurological deficits.

Method : A cross-sectional mailed survey was undertaken with all persons admitted to the two spinal injury hospital units in NSW following traumatic spinal injury in the period 1977 - 1992 who were not known to be deceased ( n =2432). Response was gained from 75.8% of the 932 persons whose address was able to be confirmed ( n =706).

Results : SI persons were primarily males who incurred a motor related trauma at a young age. Over one third had minimal or no permanent neurological impairment. Over half of the respondents received assistance with everyday living (59.5%), including older persons with minimal or no motor or sensory problems, and a large number made use of professional services (40.5%). People with lower-level incomplete lesions were more likely to use paramedical services than some groups of people with quadriplegia.

Conclusions : The relatively high use of care and paramedical services by some persons with minimal physical functional limitations indicates the importance of including such persons when considering the provision of long-term care and rehabilitation services for people with spinal injury.