Two-year prevalence of spinal gunshot injuries in Mexico: A single center experience.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study is to report epidemiological and clinical data of the patients that were admitted with spinal gunshot injuries.

METHODS

This was retrospective study and observational study. Patients who had a spinal injury secondary to a gunshot wound that was admitted to our hospital (level III trauma center) from July 2018 through July 2020 were included in the study. Demographic and clinical data including age, gender, civil status, occupation, level of injury (cervical, thoracic, or lumbar), degree of neurological impairment at admission, associated injuries, treatment established, length of hospital stay, and mortality rate were recorded.

RESULTS

A total of 55 patients were included in the study, of which 50 patients (90.9%) were men and five female patients (9.09%). The average age was 30.2 years. Three patients died during hospitalization representing a mortality rate of 5.45%.

CONCLUSIONS

Spinal gunshot injuries are associated with significant sequelae, requiring long and costly treatments. This study obtained one of the highest incidences of gunshot injuries to the spine reported in the literature.