Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39869509›Full record

ArticleAnnals of clinical and translational neurology2025

Remote neurodegeneration in the lumbosacral cord one month after spinal cord injury: a cross-sectional MRI study.

Silvan Büeler, Collene E Anderson, Veronika Birkhäuser, Patrick Freund, Oliver Gross, Thomas M Kessler, Christian W Kündig, Lorenz Leitner, Nomah Mahnoor, Ulrich Mehnert and 6 more

Registry-linked trialAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Annals of clinical and translational neurology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03965299 (Transcutaneous Tibial Nerve Stimulation in Patients With Acute Spinal Cord Injury to Prevent Neurogenic Detrusor Overactivity), which is not on this map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–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.

NCT03965299 narecruitingnot on this map

Transcutaneous Tibial Nerve Stimulation in Patients With Acute Spinal Cord Injury to Prevent Neurogenic Detrusor Overactivity: A Nationwide Randomised, Sham-controlled, Double-blind Clinical Trial

TypeinterventionalSponsorUniversity of ZurichRan2019 to 2026Enrolled114ConditionsSpinal Cord Injury, AcuteArmsVERUM TTNS, SHAM TTNS
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. 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

16 authors.

Silvan BüelerDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0003-3758-2043
Collene E AndersonDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-4350-6816
Veronika BirkhäuserDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-6646-7266
Patrick FreundSpinal Cord Injury Center, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-4851-2246
Oliver GrossDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-3330-5623
Thomas M KesslerDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-1991-5919
Christian W KündigSpinal Cord Injury Center, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0009-0007-0351-6108
Lorenz LeitnerDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0001-5764-3494
Nomah MahnoorDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0009-0003-0109-4686
Ulrich MehnertDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0001-7963-8477
Raphael RöthlisbergerDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-3685-3203
Stephanie A StalderDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-7914-8264
Stéphanie van der LelyDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-2688-9042
Carl M ZipserSpinal Cord Injury Center, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-4396-4796
Gergely DavidDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-9379-5193
Martina D LiechtiDepartment of Neuro-Urology, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-3024-0975

Funding

SNSF Eccellenza Professorial Fellowship PCEFP3_181362 / 1Swiss National Science Foundation 33IC30_179644Swiss Paraplegic Foundation (SPF)
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveTo characterize structural integrity of the lumbosacral enlargement and conus medullaris within one month after spinal cord injury (SCI).

methodsLumbosacral cord MRI data were acquired in patients with sudden onset (<7 days) SCI at the cervical or thoracic level approximately one month after injury and in healthy controls. Tissue integrity and loss were evaluated through diffusion tensor (DTI) and T2*-weighted imaging (cross-sectional area [CSA] measurements). Associations with the degree of neurological impairment were assessed using linear mixed-effects models.

resultsTwenty-one patients with SCI showed lower white matter (WM) fractional anisotropy (FA) (≤-13.3%) and higher WM radial diffusivity (≤14.6%) compared to 27 healthy controls. Differences were most pronounced in the lateral columns of WM. CSA measurements revealed no group differences. For the lateral columns, lower FA values were associated with lower motor scores and lower amplitudes of motor evoked potentials. For the dorsal columns, lower FA values were associated with lower amplitudes of somatosensory evoked potentials from the lower extremities.

interpretationOne month after SCI, first signs of WM degeneration were apparent, without indication of tissue loss. The more pronounced differences observed in the lateral column could be attributed to anterograde degeneration of the motor tracts. The variability among DTI measurements remote from the lesion site can be partially explained by the degree of the SCI-induced neurological impairment. Together with previous studies, our findings indicate that impaired tissue integrity precedes tissue loss. The presented techniques have potential applications in monitoring the progression of various neurological diseases.

Indexed as

Spinal CordSpinal Cord InjuriesWhite MatterAdultAgedCross-Sectional StudiesDiffusion Tensor ImagingEvoked Potentials, SomatosensoryFemaleHumansLumbosacral RegionMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleMiddle AgedYoung Adult

Identifiers

PMID39869509
PMCPMC11920731

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Registered trials

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.