STUDY DESIGN: Prospective case series. PURPOSE: To analyze the demographic picture of the patients suffering from compression myelopathy due to various spinal problems. Overview of Literature: There is a lack of literature depicting demographic picture of such patients with spinal injuries as most of the articles have shown the epidemiology of spinal cord injuries either managed conservatively or operatively. None have focused on the patients with compressive myelopathy requiring surgeries. METHODS: Patients with spinal pathologies with a neurological deficit due to compressive myelopathy requiring surgical decompression of dorsal and thoracolumbar region were studied. The different kinds of etiologies, the demographic profiles involved, the involvement of various regions of spine in each of the etiologies, sex distribution of different etiologies, association of age and sex with the occurrence of paraplegia, and association of thoracolumbar junction (TLJ) involvement by age and sex were studied. This study addressed the dorsal and TLJ till L2 vertebrae surgically treated by anterior transthoracic transpleural approach. RESULTS: With regard to gender, 75% of the females and 67.3% of the males were paraplegic but there was no relationship between gender and the occurrence of paraplegia (p >0.05). There was also no association between TLJ involvement and the age and sex of the patients (p >0.05). Seventy percent of the patients were paraplegic with a mean age of 38.90 years and 30% were paraparetic with a mean age of 43.43 years. Male to female ratio stood at 4.43:1. CONCLUSIONS: Traumatic spine in females is increasing. The occurrence of paraplegia and involvement of TLJ is not affected by the age and the sex of the patients. Deep epidemiological understanding of spinal pathologies can lead to a better appreciation of the potential impact of health care management strategies and health policies to prevent and minimize their consequences considering limited worldwide reports on the same.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group* ; Decompression, Surgical ; Delivery of Health Care ; Demography ; Epidemiology ; Female ; Health Policy ; Humans ; Male ; Paraplegia ; Pathology ; Prospective Studies ; Sex Distribution ; Spinal Cord Compression* ; Spinal Cord Diseases ; Spinal Cord Injuries ; Spinal Injuries ; Spine

BACKGROUND: Welding process has many hazards that the welders are exposed to resulting in numbers of health effects and diseases. Safety measures and practices among welders are important ways of preventing or reducing the health hazards associated with this occupation. We conducted this study to find out the morbidity patterns among the welders working in eastern Nepal. METHODS: A cross sectional study was conducted among 300 welders using semi structured questionnaire. Morbidity categories were classified based on symptoms experienced in past 6 months. RESULTS: All the welders learned welding by apprenticeship, without any formal health and safety training. Injury was the most common problem at work followed by skin problems and eye symptoms. Age of the welders, duration of employment & welding hours per day were associated with the morbidities among the welders. CONCLUSIONS: There is a need for occupational health services for welders in Nepal. While further research may be required to make policy recommendations, the current study provides a baseline morbidity burden among these welders to look for interventions to promote health and safety at work for this neglected group of workers in Nepal.
Cross-Sectional Studies* ; Employment ; Nepal* ; Occupational Health Services ; Occupations ; Skin ; Welding

Methods: The study was conducted on 100 adult patients. The patients were randomly allocated into two groups of 50 patients each: group A, autologous fat group, and group B, Gelfoam group. The postoperative follow-up was conducted at intervals of 6 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months. Both groups were evaluated clinically (Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Questionnaire [ODI], Visual Analog Scale [VAS], Straight Leg Raising Test [SLRT]) and radiologically (using Ross grading by contrast magnetic resonance imaging [MRI]) for development of radicular pain and hence EF. Results: Based on the analysis, improvement in mean values of ODI score, VAS score, and SLRT were found to be statistically significant postoperatively at intervals of 6 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months when compared individually in both groups. However, improvement was greater in the autologous fat group than in the Gelfoam group. Based on contrast-enhanced MRI, the number of patients who developed EF was smaller in the autologous fat group than in the Gelfoam group. Conclusions In the present study, on clinical and radiological assessment, we conclude that both groups prevent radicular pain and postoperative EF individually but relatively autologous fat was found to be more effective than Gelfoam in the prevention of EF and hence radicular pain.