Effect of Early vs Delayed Surgical Treatment on Motor Recovery in Incomplete Cervical Spinal Cord Injury With Preexisting Cervical Stenosis

Key Points Question Does early surgical treatment yield better motor recovery than delayed surgical treatment for patients with preexisting cervical canal stenosis sustaining acute traumatic spinal cord injury? Findings In this randomized clinical trial that included 72 patients with motor-incomplete cervical spinal cord injury, there was no statistically significant difference between groups in mean improvement in American Spinal Injury Association motor score, total score in the spinal cord independence measure, or patients’ ability to walk at 1 year. Early surgical treatment was associated with higher motor scores than delayed surgical treatment in the first 6 months. Meaning These findings suggest that among patients with motor-incomplete cervical spinal cord injury, early surgical treatment did not significantly improve motor recovery at 1 year compared with delayed surgical treatment but showed accelerated recovery.

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