Long-term evolution of blood lipid profiles and glycemic levels in patients after spinal cord injury.
OBJECTIVE
To analyze the lipid and glycemic profiles in relation to age, time elapsed post injury and the level of injury in a group of patients with SCI.


METHODS
2135 subjects with SCI were recruited during the annual routine health check-up carried out at the Institut Guttmann of Badalona, in Spain. The patients were classified according to the level of SCI and their age.


METHODS
Serum lipid profiles and glycemic (glucose) levels were determined. Data was collected between 1996 and 2001, all biochemical analysis being performed by the same laboratory.


RESULTS
Serum cholesterol levels show a statistically significant correlation with patient's age(P<0.001) and with time elapsed after injury (P<0.05). Differences can be observed between the values obtained from the different injury level groups (F=22.14; P<0.001). LDL-c shows a statistically significant difference between the four different age groups (F=3.51, P<0.05). There is an increase in plasma triglycerides related to the increase in age of the patients without observable differences between the injury level groups. The concentration of serum glucose increases with age (P<0.001) and also with the time elapsed after injury (P<0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
There is a direct relationship between various biochemical parameters (total cholesterol, LDL-c and glucose) and the age of the patients, but not with the severity or time of evolution of the spinal cord injury.
Vidal
J
J
Institut Guttmann, Hospital de Neurorehabilitacíon, camí de Can Ruti s/n Badalona, Spain.
Javierre
C
C
Curià
F J
FJ
Garrido
E
E
Lizarraga
M-A
MA
Segura
R
R
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D002574:Cervical Vertebrae / Q000293:injuries; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood*; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000293:injuries; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010361:Patients / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000097:blood*; D013904:Thoracic Vertebrae / Q000293:injuries; D013995:Time; D013997:Time Factors
D001786:Blood Glucose; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL; D002784:Cholesterol