Bladder management is the top health concern among adults with a spinal cord injury

Introduction and Objective Individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) commonly experience secondary complications though it is not known how they prioritize these different health domains. Using the Neurogenic Bladder Research Group (NBRG) SCI registry, our objective was to identify the top health concerns of individuals with SCI and identify factors that may be associated with these choices with particular focus on urologic issues that participants face. Methods Participants in the NBRG registry were asked: “What are the top 3 problems that affect you on a daily basis?” Urinary symptoms and QoL were assessed with the Neurogenic Bladder Symptom Score (NBSS). Multivariate regression was used to identify factors related to selecting a top ranked health issue. Results Among our 1461 participants, 882 (60.4%) were men and the median age was 45.1 years (IQR 25.3−64.9). Bladder management was the most commonly top ranked primary issue (39%) followed by pain (16.4%) and bowel management (11.6%). Factors associated with ranking bladder management as the primary concern included years since injury (OR 1.01 [1.00−1.02], p = 0.042), higher (worse) total NBSS (OR 1.05 [1.03−1.06], p