Marco Tofani (editor) - Measuring Spinal Cord Injury : A Practical Guide of Outcome Measures

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Every year, around the world, between 250,000 and 500,000 people suffer a spinal cord injury (SCI). There is no reliable estimate of global prevalence, but the estimated annual global incidence is 4080 cases per million. Traffic accidents were typically the most common cause of SCI, followed by falls in the elderly population [].

Living with an SCI requires strategies to face a wide range of health-related problems. Apart from the paralysis, problems in various body functions, such as the bladder, bowel and sexual function, autonomic function, and pain, will be of concern. Functional problems can lead to limitations in activities and participation restrictions typically related to mobility, self-care activities, difficulties in regaining work, maintaining social relationships, participating in leisure activities, and being active members of the community [].

The research group aims to develop a systematic review to identify all the evaluation tools developed and validated to measure different aspects of SCI. This study aims to provide clinicians and researchers information regarding the existing outcome measures to assess people with SCI based on reviewing, analyzing, comparing, and critically appraising the available outcome measures and their distribution in the international literature.

The International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) []. According to ICF, many people living with SCI face different body function problems and structure domains according to lesion levels and according to early post-acute or long-term settings. These differences also appear in the activity and participation domains. New efforts to understand differences within people living with SCI, according to the ICF framework, were made.