A systematic review of cardiovascular risk factors in patients with traumatic spinal cord injury

Objective: The main risk factors for cardiac events, and particularly for the development of atherosclerosis, are diabetes mellitus, arterial hypertension, dyslipidemia and smoking. Patients with a traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) may present with autonomic nervous system dysfunction depending on their level of spinal cord injury. Studies have found a rise in cardiovascular mortality. A systematic review was conducted that focused on this patient group's predisposition to vascular risk. Methods: We performed a PubMed and Cochrane database search. After applying specific search criteria, 42 articles were included in our analysis out of a total of 10,784 matches. The articles were selected with the aim of establishing cardiovascular risk factors in patients with traumatic spinal cord injury. Results: Patients with SCI are at an increased risk for peripheral artery disease even in the absence of cardiovascular risk factors. Major vascular changes to the arteries of patients with SCI include: a reduction in lumen size, increased vessel wall tension, higher vascular stiffness, an impaired reactive hyperemic response, and a lack of reduced vascular resistance. The findings for carotid atherosclerosis were inconclusive. This group of patients also has a higher disposition for diabetes mellitus, lipid metabolism disorders and coronary artery disease. Paraplegics are more likely to suffer from dyslipidemia, obesity and PAD, while tetraplegics are more likely to have diabetes mellitus. Conclusions: Patients with SCI are more likely to have cardiovascular risk factors and have cardiovascular disease compared to the normal population. Peripheral circulatory disorders are particularly common. Patients with SCI are now considered to be a new risk group for cardiovascular disease; however, large epidemiological studies are needed to verify in more detail the cardiovascular risk profile of this patient group.