title: Traumatic spinal cord injuries in Turkey: a nation-wide epidemiological study.
abstract: METHODS
  An epidemiological study conducted all over the country.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The present retrospective study was conducted to survey the new traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) cases during 1992 in Turkey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Intensive care units, emergency services and departments of orthopaedic surgery, neurosurgery and rehabilitation of state hospitals, rehabilitation centers, military and university hospitals.
  
  
  METHODS
  Postal questionnaires were used for data collection and the records from medical institutes nation-wide were reviewed for the analysis of the epidemiological factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Five hundred and eighty-one new traumatic SCI cases were reported in 1992. The annual incidence was found to be 12.7 per million population. Male to female ratio was 2.5:1 and the average age at injury was 35.5+/-15.1 (35.4+/-14.8 for males and 35.9+/-16.0 for females). The most common cause of injury was motor vehicle accidents (48.8%) followed by falls (36.5%), stab wounds (3.3%), gunshot injuries (1.9%) and injuries from diving (1.2%). One hundred and eighty-seven patients (32.18%) were tetraplegic and 394 patients (67.8%) were paraplegic. The most common level of injury was C5 among tetraplegics and T12 among paraplegics. The most prevalent associated injury was head trauma followed by extremity fractures. Severe head trauma resulting in death may obscure the real incidence of SCI and may cause underreporting of cases in epidemiological studies.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Considering that motor vehicle accidents and falls were found to be the leading causes of traumatic SCI, it was concluded that the prevention measures should be focused mainly on these in order to reduce the frequency of SCI in Turkey.
authors: Bakirköy Istanbul, Turkey.
authors: I
authors: I
authors: Karacan
authors: H
authors: H
authors: Koyuncu
authors: O
authors: O
authors: Pekel
authors: G
authors: G
authors: Sümbüloglu
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Kirnap
authors: H
authors: H
authors: Dursun
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Kalkan
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Cengiz
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Yalinkiliç
authors: H I
authors: HI
authors: Unalan
authors: K
authors: K
authors: Nas
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Orkun
authors: I
authors: I
authors: Tekeoglu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010264:Paraplegia / Q000209:etiology; D011782:Quadriplegia / Q000209:etiology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012621:Seasons; D017678:Sex Distribution; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014421:Turkey