Predictors of Intraspinal Pressure and Optimal Cord Perfusion Pressure After Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: We recently developed techniques to monitor intraspinal pressure (ISP) and spinal cord perfusion pressure (SCPP) from the injury site to compute the optimum SCPP (SCPP) in patients with acute traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI). We hypothesized that ISP and SCPP can be predicted using clinical factors instead of ISP monitoring.

METHODS

Sixty-four TSCI patients, grades A-C (American spinal injuries association Impairment Scale, AIS), were analyzed. For 24 h after surgery, we monitored ISP and SCPP and computed SCPP (SCPP that optimizes pressure reactivity). We studied how well 28 factors correlate with mean ISP or SCPP including 7 patient-related, 3 injury-related, 6 management-related, and 12 preoperative MRI-related factors.

RESULTS

All patients underwent surgery to restore normal spinal alignment within 72 h of injury. Fifty-one percentage had U-shaped sPRx versus SCPP curves, thus allowing SCPP to be computed. Thirteen percentage, all AIS grade A or B, had no U-shaped sPRx versus SCPP curves. Thirty-six percentage (22/64) had U-shaped sPRx versus SCPP curves, but the SCPP did not reach the minimum of the curve, and thus, an exact SCPP could not be calculated. In total 5/28 factors were associated with lower ISP: older age, excess alcohol consumption, nonconus medullaris injury, expansion duroplasty, and less intraoperative bleeding. In a multivariate logistic regression model, these 5 factors predicted ISP as normal or high with 73% accuracy. Only 2/28 factors correlated with lower SCPP: higher mean ISP and conus medullaris injury. In an ordinal multivariate logistic regression model, these 2 factors predicted SCPP as low, medium-low, medium-high, or high with only 42% accuracy. No MRI factors correlated with ISP or SCPP.

CONCLUSIONS

Elevated ISP can be predicted by clinical factors. Modifiable factors that may lower ISP are: reducing surgical bleeding and performing expansion duroplasty. No factors accurately predict SCPP; thus, invasive monitoring remains the only way to estimate SCPP.