Article

OBJECTIVE: To map the impact of spinal cord lesion (SCL) on medication.Study
design:Registration of medication for 72 patients before SCL and at discharge
from the Department for Spinal Cord Injuries.Setting:Department for Spinal Cord
Injuries, East Denmark. METHODS: The changes in medication for each Anatomical
Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) Classification System group were registered for all
patients, who were discharged from Department for Spinal Cord Injuries during
2010. The changes in medication per se were calculated for different parts of the
population: non-traumatic, traumatic patients, men, women, paraplegia,
tetraplegia, American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale (AIS) A, B or C,
AIS D, age 0-45, 46-60 and 60+. In addition, comparisons of changes in medication
were made between complementary parts of the population. RESULTS: The overall
increase in medication after SCL was 3.29 times (P<0.001). Statistically
significant increases were seen for most medicine categories. When studying
subgroups of the population, the increase was most constantly seen for the
medicine in the groups 'Alimentary tract and metabolism' and 'Nervous system'.
The highest overall increases were seen in patients with AIS A, B and C compared
with AIS D (P<0.05). There was no difference between traumatic and non-traumatic
SCL, men and women, and younger compared with older patients. CONCLUSION: SCL
elicits a general massive need for medicine. The relative increase is most
pronounced for the more severely injured (AIS A, B and C). The increase in
medication may have implications for side effects and for the economy of all
involved.

Langue : ANGLAIS