Care of posttraumatic paraplegia patients in our setup- a retrospective study

Introduction: Paraplegia is one of the most important morbidity faced by people in the age group of 25-50yrs due to trauma to spine. To make them live a near normal life must be the aim of rehabilitation. But in rural setup due to lack of awareness and being economically backward, care for patients is miserable.
Aim: The study is aimed at covering those problems faced by paraplegic patients and the inadequateness of rehabilitation in our society as a retrospective study
Materials and Methods: The study is retrospective study where in patients admitted to RMMC&H from June 2015 to September 2017 was taken for consideration. All cases of paraplegia due to spinal trauma presented to our hospital were considered. Their physical condition, neurological status, socio economic status, rehabilitation measures are studied
Results: 20 Post traumatic paraplegia patients who were rehabilitated in our setup were studied. The average gain in FIM score in dorsal spine fractures is 41.33 and in lumbar spine fractures is 28.75.Major complications faced by paraplegic patients are Pressure ulcers, UTI which contribute 50% and 40% respectively.
Conclusion: There is a need to set up more specialized spinal trauma units across the country with good accessibility to poorer sections of society for comprehensive management of spinal cord injury. Early liaison of hospitals without specialized spinal units to specialized spinal centers should be encouraged, and early surgery with comprehensive rehabilitation can be carried easily.