Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26481703›Full record

Observational studySpinal cord2016

Mortality benefit of statin use in traumatic spinal cord injury: a retrospective analysis.

M D Stillman, C E Aston, M H Rabadi

Open access · bronzeAbstract readObservational Study
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Observational study in Spinal cord, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
0.5field-weighted citation impact, top 29% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 16 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Guideline
  2. Guideline
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Delayed atorvastatin delivery promotes recovery after experimental spinal cord injury.Neurotherapeutics : the journal of the American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics · 2025
    Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

M D StillmanDepartments of Internal Medicine and Neurosurgery, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, KY, USA.
C E AstonDepartment of Pediatrics, The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA.
M H RabadiDepartment of Neurobiology, University of Oklahoma School of Medicine, Veterans Affairs Medical Center at Oklahoma University, Oklahoma City, OK, USA.
University of Louisville · USUniversity of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center · USUniversity of Oklahoma Medical Center · US

Funding

Tracking and Evaluation CoreU54GM104938 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA HLTH SCIENCES CTR · PI Robert Hal Scofield · 2013 to 2026
$68.2M
NIGMS NIH HHS 1 U54GM104938
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

STUDY

designAn observational study based on retrospective review of the medical charts and death records of 163 individuals with traumatic spinal cord injuries (SCI).

objectivesTo determine whether HMG coA Reductase Inhibitor ('statin') use in a cohort of patients with traumatic SCI reduced overall and cause-specific mortality.

settingAn outpatient clinic designated for veterans with SCI at the Oklahoma City Veterans Administration Hospital.

methodsReview and analysis of the medical records of 163 veterans with traumatic SCI cared for between the years 2000 and 2014. Data collected included statin use, duration of statin use and intensity of statin therapy, as well as cause-specific mortality.

resultsSeventy five participants had taken statins for an average of 5.7 ± 3.7 years, and had greater cardiovascular risk burdens than those who had not taken statins (n = 88). Statin use was associated with a reduced risk of death. The mortality rate for those patients on statins was 33.8-49.9 per 1000 person-years, depending on assumptions made regarding residual effects of statin use. Under most assumptions this was significantly lower than the mortality rate seen in those not on statins (47.4-66.8 deaths per 1000 person-years). Within the statin group, neither duration nor average intensity of statin therapy affected mortality.

conclusionStatin use among a cohort of veterans with traumatic SCI reduced all-cause mortality. This retrospective study ought to spur further investigations into the potential benefits of statin use among people with chronic SCI, and begin a discussion as to whether individuals with injuries should routinely be offered statin therapy.

Indexed as

Cardiovascular DiseasesAdultAgedCohort StudiesFemaleHumansHydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase InhibitorsMaleMiddle AgedOutpatientsRisk FactorsSpinal Cord InjuriesSurvival AnalysisVeteransHydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors

Identifiers

PMID26481703
OpenAlexW2142373937

What OpenQuestion holds

Texttitle and abstract
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.