Objective Mechanism of injury is a largely understudied descriptor of acute traumatic spinal cord injury (tSCI). This study sought to compare the impact of high-energy and low-energy mechanisms of injury in neurological outcomes of cervical sensorimotor complete tSCI.
Methods Patients with tSCI were identified in 4 prospective, multicenter clinical trials and registries. American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale (AIS) grade was assessed ≤ 72 hours postinjury and followed up between 12 to 52 weeks. Patients were included if they had a cervical and sensorimotor complete (AIS–A) injury at baseline. Study outcomes were change in AIS grade and lower extremity motor, upper extremity motor, and total motor scores. Propensity score matching between high-energy mechanisms of injury (HEMI; e.g. , motor vehicle collisions) and low-energy mechanisms of injury (LEMI; e.g. , falls) groups was performed. Adjusted groups were compared with paired t-tests and McNemar test.
Results Of 667 patients eligible for inclusion, 523 experienced HEMI (78.4%). HEMI patients were younger, had lower body mass index, more associated fractures or dislocations, and lower baseline lower extremity motor scores. After propensity score matching of these baseline variables, 118 pairs were matched. HEMI patients had a significantly worse motor recovery from baseline to follow-up based on their diminished change in upper extremity motor scores and total motor scores.
Conclusion Cervical sensorimotor complete tSCIs from HEMI were associated with significantly lower motor recovery compared to LEMI patients. Our findings suggest that mechanism of injury should be considered in modelling prognosis and in understanding the heterogeneity of outcomes after acute tSCI.
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Objective To evaluate how multimodal intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) changes during spinal ependymoma (SE) resection correlate with long-term neuro-functional outcomes.
Methods A retrospective analysis of patients aged 18 years or older who underwent surgical resection for SE over a 10-year period was conducted. IONM changes were defined as sustained transcranial motor evoked potential (TcMEP) and/or somatosensory evoked potential (SSEP) signal decrease of 50% or greater from baseline. Primary endpoints were postoperative modified McCormick Neurologic Scale (MNS) scores at postoperative day (POD) < 2, 6 weeks, 1 year, and 2 years. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed.
Results Twenty-nine patients were identified. Average age was 44.2 ± 15.4 years. Sixteen (55.2%) were male and 13 (44.8%) were female. Tumor location was 10 cervical-predominant (34.5%), 13 thoracic-predominant (44.8%), and 6 lumbar/conus-predominant (20.7%). A majority (69.0%) were World Health Organization grade 2 tumors. Twentyfour patients (82.8%) achieved gross total resection. Thirteen patients (44.8%) had a sustained documented IONM signal change and 10 (34.5%) had a TcMEP change with or without derangement in SSEP. At POD < 2, 6 weeks, 1 year, and 2 years, MNS was significantly higher for those when analyzing subgroups with either any sustained IONM or TcMEP ± SSEP signal attenuation > 50% below baseline (all p < 0.05).
Conclusion Sustained IONM derangements > 50% below baseline, particularly for TcMEP, are significantly associated with higher MNS postoperatively out to 2 years. Intraoperative and postoperative management of these patients warrant special consideration to limit neurologic morbidity.
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Objective Cauda equina tumors affect the peripheral nervous system, and the validities of triggered electromyogram (tEMG) and intraoperative neurophysiologic monitoring (IOM) are unclear. We sought to evaluate the accuracy and relevance of tEMG combined with IOM during cauda equina tumor resection.
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Results One hundred three patients who underwent intraoperative tEMG were included; 38 underwent only tEMG (tEMG-only group), and 65 underwent a combination of tEMG and multimodal IOM (MIOM group). There were no significant differences between the neurologic outcomes, extents of resection, or recurrence rates of the 2 groups. No significant therapeutic benefit was observed; however, the accuracy of intraoperative predetection improved with the combination of IOM and tEMG (accuracy: tEMG-only group, 86.8%; MIOM group, 92.3%). When the involved rootlet was resected despite the positive tEMG result, motor function worsened in 3 of 8 cases. The sensitivity and specificity of tEMG were 37.5% and 94.7%, respectively.
Conclusion tEMG is an essential adjunctive surgical tool for deciding on and planning for rootlet resection. If the tEMG finding is negative, complete resection, involving the rootlet, may be safe. The accuracy may be further improved by using a combination of tEMG and IOM.
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