Article

OBJECTIVE: To track changes in quality of life and function for people with
spinal cord injury (SCI) along the lifespan. DESIGN: A wave panel design in which
data were collected annually over 5 years across 6 strata that represented
different periods since injury. SETTING: Telephone interviews with participants
in their home environment. PARTICIPANTS: People (n=270) who had sustained a
traumatic SCI in Queensland, Australia, over the previous 60 years.
INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Quality of life was
measured using the World Health Organization Quality of Life-8. Human functioning
was measured in 3 components. Body structure/function was measured using the
Secondary Conditions Surveillance Instrument. Activity was measured using the
motor subscale of the FIM (mFIM) and the Clinical Outcomes Variables Scale.
Participation was measured using the Community Integration Measure (CIM) and the
Impact on Participation and Autonomy questionnaire. RESULTS: Quality of life
remained relatively constant across the lifespan. For body structure/function,
there was a significant increase in secondary conditions with time since injury.
There was a significant decrease in activity as measured by the mFIM for higher
functioning individuals. Participation, as measured by the CIM, showed a
significant increase with time since injury, but not when adjusted for the
American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale, income level, and living
situation. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study highlight that people with SCI
are able to maintain quality of life and participation along the lifespan;
however, increases in secondary conditions and a decline in function over time
are likely. Rehabilitation services could work more effectively at addressing
secondary prevention through enhanced monitoring over time, while broader
societal responses are likely to hold the key to optimizing human functioning.
CI - Copyright (c) 2012 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS