Descriptive epidemiology of traumatic spinal injury in Japan

Mahammad Abbas Tafida; Yukiko Wagatsuma; Enbo Ma; Taro Mizutani; Toshikazu Abe

doi:10.1016/j.jos.2017.10.013

Descriptive epidemiology of traumatic spinal injury in Japan

J Orthop Sci. 2018 Mar;23(2):273-276. doi: 10.1016/j.jos.2017.10.013. Epub 2017 Nov 14.

Authors

Mahammad Abbas Tafida¹, Yukiko Wagatsuma², Enbo Ma³, Taro Mizutani⁴, Toshikazu Abe⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Trial and Clinical Epidemiology, Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan.
² Department of Clinical Trial and Clinical Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan.
³ Department of Clinical Trial and Clinical Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan. Electronic address: mae@md.tsukuba.ac.jp.
⁴ Department of Emergency and Critical Care Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan.
⁵ Department of Emergency and Critical Care Medicine, Tsukuba Medical Center Hospital, Tsukuba, Japan.

PMID: 29150193
DOI: 10.1016/j.jos.2017.10.013

Abstract

Background: Spine injury epidemiology in Japan has not been studied since the 1990s when its incidence was 39.4-40.2 per million and the major cause of injury was motor vehicle crashes. We elucidate the current epidemiological state of spinal injury and spinal injury patients in Japan for the clinicians and public health prevention programs.

Methods: Spine injury patients were retrospectively selected from the Japan Trauma Data Bank (JTDB) from 2004 to 2013 for all ages and all spinal injuries. The Abbreviated Injury Scale codes (AIS98) were translated into injuries. The dataset was contributed by 241 hospitals nationwide. The data was analysed for the causes of spinal injury, injury severity, age, gender differences, injury types, survival, anatomic location, circumstances of injury and medical history.

Results: A total of 25,792 (M, 70.1%, F, 29.9%, mean age: 53.4 years) spinal injury patients were recorded in the JTDB from 2004 to 2013, when multiple injuries were included the number of cases swelled to 33,892 (M, 70.4%, F, 29.6%). The number of patients with spinal injuries as a percentage of all traumatic patients in the JTDB was observed to increase from 2004 (15.4%) to 2013 (17.6%). The aetiology of the injuries was mostly falls (52.4%) and motor vehicle crashes (39.8%). Most injuries occurred at the cervical spine level (49.7%). Medical histories of cardiovascular diseases were found, due mostly to hypertension (19.6%). In total, most of the injuries were associated with fractures (64.8%) and others (30.7%) involved the spinal cord. Suicides (12.0%) and industrial accidents (9.0%) caused spine injury were uniquely prevalent in the population.

Conclusion: The number of spine injuries has increased in the JTDB between 2004 and 2013. Motor vehicle crashes have been replaced by falls due to various causes as the leading cause of spine injury. Suicides and industrial accidents are becoming a burden. More studies are needed to verify the actual incidence.

MeSH terms

Accidents, Traffic*
Adolescent
Adult
Age Distribution
Aged
Cross-Sectional Studies
Disability Evaluation*
Female
Humans
Incidence
Injury Severity Score
Japan / epidemiology
Male
Middle Aged
Registries*
Retrospective Studies
Risk Assessment
Sex Distribution
Spinal Cord Injuries / diagnostic imaging
Spinal Cord Injuries / epidemiology
Spinal Fractures / diagnosis
Spinal Fractures / epidemiology
Spinal Injuries / diagnosis*
Spinal Injuries / epidemiology*
Young Adult