Psychosocial reintegration post-traumatic spinal cord injury in Rwanda: An exploratory study.
Maurice Kanyoni, Lena N Wikmar, Joliana Philips and 1 others
PMID 38445219WHAT IT FOUND
Traumatic spinal cord injury survivors in Rwanda reported poor community reintegration.
Men and those with paraplegia fared better than women and those with tetraplegia. These findings highlight the need for rehabilitation services that address gender-specific barriers and support those with higher-level injuries.
Key findings
01The overall psychosocial reintegration scores were low, indicating poor community reintegration for the majority of participants.
02Gender was significantly associated with reintegration, with men reporting better outcomes than women in living skills and overall participation.
03Level of injury was associated with occupational activity, with those having paraplegia reporting better outcomes than those with tetraplegia.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The sample size was small (n=58), with significant attrition from the original cohort due to death and untraceable participants, which may introduce selection bias. The SPRS-2 instrument was not validated for reliability or validity in the Rwandan context, so scores may not accurately reflect reintegration in this specific population. The study was conducted immediately after the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have affected community reintegration opportunities and participant availability. As an exploratory follow-up study, it cannot establish causality between gender or injury level and reintegration outcomes.
Declared interests
The authors declare no funding and no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume these findings generalize to other settings or populations. The study is limited by a small sample, lack of instrument validation in Rwanda, and significant participant attrition, so the observed gender and injury-level associations should be interpreted with caution and not applied as universal predictors of reintegration.