The pattern of urologic care among traumatic spinal cord injured patients

Authors

  • Blayne Welk Western University and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences - Western (ICES Western)
  • Kim Chi Tran Western University
  • Kuan Liu Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences - Western (ICES Western), London ON
  • Salimah Shariff Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences - Western (ICES Western), London ON

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5489/cuaj.2403

Keywords:

Spinal Cord Injuries, Urology, Observational Study, Referral and Consultation

Abstract

Introduction: We assessed the urologic care patterns of traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI) patients.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of adult TSCI patients injured between 2002 and 2012. The primary outcome was urologic consultation. The primary exposure was the year of injury. Measured covariates included lesion level, age, gender, comorbidity burden, and socioeconomic status.

Results: We identified 1551 incident TSCI patients who were discharged from a rehabilitation hospital in Ontario between 2002 and 2012. The median follow-up time of this cohort was 5.0 (interquartile range [IQR] 2.9–7.5) years. Within this cohort, 74% were male, and the mean age was 48 (IQR 33-63) years. In total, 66% of patients (1022/1551) were seen by a urologist in a median of 0.7 (IQR 0.2-3.0) years after the SCI. Over the study period, there was no change in the proportion of TSCI patients being assessed by a urologist within 1 year of their initial injury (median 55.1%, p = 0.92 for the trend). An adjusted Cox proportional hazards model demonstrated that TSCI patients who were female (hazard ratio [HR] 0.77, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.66–0.92) or over 65 years of age (HR 0.70, 95% CI 0.57–0.85) were significantly less likely to be referred to a urologist.

Conclusions: Urologists are often not involved in the care of TSCI patients, and this has not changed significantly over the last 10 years. Females and older patients are significantly less likely to be referred to a urologist.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Downloads

Published

2014-11-24

How to Cite

Welk, B., Tran, K. C., Liu, K., & Shariff, S. (2014). The pattern of urologic care among traumatic spinal cord injured patients. Canadian Urological Association Journal, 8(11-12), e805–9. https://doi.org/10.5489/cuaj.2403

Issue

Vol. 8 No. 11-12 (2014): CUAJ November

Section

Original Research

License

You, the Author(s), assign your copyright in and to the Article to the Canadian Urological Association. This means that you may not, without the prior written permission of the CUA:

  • Post the Article on any Web site
  • Translate or authorize a translation of the Article
  • Copy or otherwise reproduce the Article, in any format, beyond what is permitted under Canadian copyright law, or authorize others to do so
  • Copy or otherwise reproduce portions of the Article, including tables and figures, beyond what is permitted under Canadian copyright law, or authorize others to do so.

The CUA encourages use for non-commercial educational purposes and will not unreasonably deny any such permission request.

You retain your moral rights in and to the Article. This means that the CUA may not assert its copyright in such a way that would negatively reflect on your reputation or your right to be associated with the Article.

The CUA also requires you to warrant the following:

  • That you are the Author(s) and sole owner(s), that the Article is original and unpublished and that you have not previously assigned copyright or granted a licence to any other third party;
  • That all individuals who have made a substantive contribution to the article are acknowledged;
  • That the Article does not infringe any proprietary right of any third party and that you have received the permissions necessary to include the work of others in the Article; and
  • That the Article does not libel or violate the privacy rights of any third party.