title: Incidence of spinal cord injuries in Plovdiv and Plovdiv region, Bulgaria.
abstract: This retrospective study was conducted to evaluate the incidence of spinal cord injuries in Plovdiv and Plovdiv region, Bulgaria. The study material comprised 980 patients treated over a period of 10 years (1983-1992) in the Clinics of Traumatic and Orthopaedic Surgery and Neurosurgery, University of Medicine, Plovdiv, which are the only therapeutic establishment in this region with a population of 750,000 to admit and treat this type of injury. Conservative treatment was applied in 34.46% of the patients using various methods: the method of Gorinevska-Dreving, immobilisation in either a plaster jacket or minerva depending on the injury site, the reclination methods of Davis-Erie or Watson-Jones, cranial extension by Crutchfield. Operative treatment also was used and included posterior stabilisation with or without bone plastics, anterior vertebrodesis in the cervical and thoracolumbar regions from a transpleural and retroperitoneal approaches and anterior vertebrodesis with a partial or complete replacement of the vertebral body.
authors.affiliation: Department of Traumatic and Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Medicine, Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Stavrev
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kitov
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dimov
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kalnev
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Petrov
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002031:Bulgaria / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012424:Rural Population; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D013123:Spinal Fusion / Q000379:methods; D014505:Urban Population