Spinal cord injury rehabilitation and mental health, SCReaM

The aim of the study was to investigate whether people with a pre-existing mental health disorder (MHD) benefit from rehabilitation following a spinal cord injury (SCI) and how their outcomes differ from those without a pre-existing MHD.

Rehabilitation outcomes of a cohort of patients with pre-existing MHD discharged from the London SCI Centre over a 6-year period were investigated. A retrospective matched case-control study design was used to compare the Spinal Cord Independence Measure III between those with an SCI and pre-existing MHD and those without and both compared with published expected outcomes.

The study found that, overall, those with MHD do benefit from SCI rehabilitation and that their outcomes do not significantly differ from those without MHD. Furthermore, the outcomes were favourable when compared with published expected outcomes.

Having a pre-existing MHD does not preclude patients with an SCI from benefiting from rehabilitation. These findings are an important basis on which to ensure equal access to rehabilitation for patients with a pre-existing MHD.