Objective:This prospective-controlled observational study looked at well-matched patients with spinal pain and radicular symptoms, caused by lumbar intervertebral disc herniation to compare the short-term clinical outcome of transforaminal and interlaminar epidural steroid injection (ESI) in a resource challenged tertiary institution in Nigeria.Materials and Methods:49 patients with radicular symptoms who were matched for age, symptom duration, magnetic resonance imaging findings, and pre-injection revised Oswentry Disability Index (ODI) score and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) were assigned into ESI technique. The ODI and VAS score were analyzed immediately after an injection and upon follow-up (average 178.5 days), also with the need for repeated injections and surgical interventions over a 1-year follow-up interval.Result:In the transforaminal group (25 patients), there was a statistically significant improvement in the ODI scores from before the injection (ODI mean 62.4) to immediately after the injection (ODI mean 24.4, P < 0.01), and upon follow-up (ODI mean 20.8, P < 0.01). 9 patients (18.4%) required 1 or 2 repeated injections, 3 (6.1%) patients underwent surgery and 2 (4%) patients lost to follow-up. In the interlaminar group (24 patients), there was a statistically significant improvement in the ODI scores from before the injection (ODI mean 60.7) to immediately after the injection (ODI mean 30.1, P < 0.01), but not upon follow-up (ODI mean 43.2, P = 0.09). 11 (22.4%) patients required 1 or 2 repeated injection, 4 (8%) patients underwent surgery and 3 (6.1%) patients were lost to follow-up. There is an average of 2 fold improvement of transforaminal ESI over interlaminar ESI in a 40 point scale of ODI score on follow-up, which was statistically significant (P < 0.01). The VAS showed similar pattern with the ODI scores in the study.Conclusion:Transforaminal ESI to treat symptomatic lumbar disc herniation resulted in better short-term pain improvement and fewer long-term surgical interventions compared to interlaminar ESI.

Study design: A prospective study. Objectives: To determine the cost of acute phase of injury (ASCI) among spinal cord-injured patients managed conservatively in Nigeria. Settings: Gwagwalada, Abuja. Methods: Over a 1-year period (1 January 2009 to 31 December 2009), the cost of ASCI of consecutive spinal cord-injured patients, gainfully employed preinjury, who paid the hospital bill directly from their purses and could estimate their daily income, and who were managed conservatively for 6 weeks before discharge to rehabilitation, was prospectively examined. Results: A total of 34 cases of spinal cord-injured patients with a mean age of 35.4±12.8 years were included in this study. The mean cost of ASCI over 6 weeks was $1598.29, an average of 6.4-232.8% of patients' annual income where 450% of the people live on less than a dollar a day. The mean cost of hospitalization was 14.9% of the total cost of ASCI in this study. It was significantly more expensive to treat tetraplegics compared with paraplegics. Conclusion: This study identified the cost of acute phase of spinal cord injury in Nigeria to assist clinicians in planning treatment that could reduce financial burden on the patients but optimize patients' care.

FJI offered added benefit over physiotherapy in LBPs diagnosed with FJA. Patients with FJI have a significant reduction in pain symptom than the patients in the physiotherapy group. Though majority of the patients reported satisfactory outcome, the FJI patients group had a better outcome.

These data showed the correlation between trauma mechanism and the type of fracture seen, and also the type of fracture and the incidence of neurologic deficit. The predictors of fracture types are age and road traffic injury while age, road traffic injury, and cervical spine fractures predict neurologic deficit.