Quality of Life after Surviving a Spinal Cord Injury: An Observational Study in South India

Background: Spinal cord injury (SCI) and its negative impact on the quality of life (QOL) is a significant public health concern in India. People with SCI suffer from serious health, economic, and social consequences in their lives. Often, care for SCI survivors is left to their immediate family members in India. Appropriate planning is needed for prevention, rehabilitation, health, and psychological care for SCI in the country. Purpose: This study assessed the overall QOL of SCI survivors and their satisfaction levels with specific domains and their importance of QOL. Materials and Methods: In this observational study, two instruments, Farrens and Power for QOL and Barthel Index for functional abilities, were administered to a convenience sample of participants drawn from Narayana Medical College, Nellore, in South India. Results: Statistically, SCI survivors were found moderately and very satisfied with their QOL. Their perception about importance of health, functioning, social, and economic subscale also did not differ statistically.