Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32647022›Full record

ArticleBMJ open2020

Attrition from specialised rehabilitation associated with an elevated mortality risk: results from a vital status tracing study in Swiss spinal cord injured patients.

Jonviea D Chamberlain, Inge E Eriks-Hoogland, Kerstin Hug, Xavier Jordan, Martin Schubert, Martin W G Brinkhof

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
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

4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
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  4. Article
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

6 authors.

Jonviea D ChamberlainSwiss Paraplegic Research, Nottwil, Switzerland jonviea.chamberlain@u-bordeaux.fr.ORCID 0000-0002-9515-1076
Inge E Eriks-HooglandSwiss Paraplegic Centre, Nottwil, Switzerland.
Kerstin HugREHAB Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Xavier JordanClinique Romande de Réadaptation, Sion, Switzerland.
Martin SchubertBalgrist University Hospital, Zürich, Switzerland.
Martin W G BrinkhofSwiss Paraplegic Research, Nottwil, Switzerland.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionStudy drop-out and attrition from treating clinics is common among persons with chronic health conditions. However, if attrition is associated with adverse health outcomes, it may bias or mislead inferences for health policy and resource allocation.

methodsThis retrospective cohort study uses data attained through the Swiss Spinal Cord Injury (SwiSCI) cohort study on persons with spinal cord injury (SCI). Vital status (VS) was ascertained either through clinic medical records (MRs) or through municipalities in a secondary tracing effort. Flexible parametric survival models were used to investigate risk factors for going lost to clinic (LTC) and the association of LTC with subsequent risk of mortality.

results1924 individuals were included in the tracing study; for 1608 of these cases, contemporary VS was initially checked in the MRs. VS was ascertained for 704 cases of the 1608 cases initially checked in MRs; of the remaining cases (n=904), nearly 90% were identified in municipalities (n=804). LTC was associated with a nearly fourfold higher risk of mortality (HR=3.62; 95% CI 2.18 to 6.02) among persons with traumatic SCI. Extended driving time (ie, less than 30 min compared with 30 min and longer to reach the nearest specialised rehabilitation facility) was associated with an increased risk of mortality (HR=1.51, 95% CI 1.02 to 2.22) for individuals with non-traumatic SCI.

conclusionThe differential risk of LTC according to sociodemographic and SCI lesion characteristics underscores the importance of accounting for attrition in cohort studies on chronic disease populations requiring long-term care. In addition, given the associated risk of mortality, LTC is an issue of concern to clinicians and policy makers aiming to optimise the long-term survival of community-dwelling individuals with traumatic SCI. Future studies are necessary to verify whether it is possible to improve survival prospects of individuals LTC through more persistent outreach and targeted care.

Indexed as

AdolescentAdultAgedCohort StudiesFemaleHumansMaleMedical RecordsMiddle AgedMortalityRehabilitationRetrospective StudiesRisk FactorsSpinal Cord InjuriesSwitzerlandVital Signsepidemiologyneurological injuryrehabilitation medicinespinestatistics & research methods

Identifiers

PMID32647022
PMCPMC7351285

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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.