A Randomized, Controlled Trial of Methylprednisolone or Naloxone in the Treatment of Acute Spinal-Cord Injury

• Published in: The New England journal of medicine Vol. 323; no. 17; pp. 1207 - 1209
• Main Authors: Lyons, Mark K, Partington, Michael D, Meyer, Fredric B, Yarkony, Gary M, Roth, Elliot J, Senegor, Moris, Stifel, Henry G, Brown, Margaret, Bracken, Michael B, Shepard, Mary Jo, Collins, William F, Holford, Theodore R, Young, Wise, Piepmeier, Joseph, Leo-Summers, Linda, Baskin, David S, Eisenberg, Howard M, Flamm, Eugene, Marshall, Lawrence F, Maroon, Joseph, Wilberger, Jack, Perot, Phanor L, Sonntag, Volker K.H, Wagner, Franklin C, Winn, H. Richard
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Massachusetts Medical Society 25.10.1990
• Subjects: Acute Disease; Humans; Methylprednisolone - therapeutic use; Naloxone - therapeutic use; Proprioception - physiology; Public Relations; Spinal Cord Injuries - drug therapy
• ISSN: 0028-4793; 1533-4406
• DOI: 10.1056/NEJM199010253231712

To the Editor: After reading the recent article by Bracken et al. (May 17 issue), 1 we have several questions regarding data not discussed that would facilitate our analysis of this very important work. First, we understand from the description of the neurologic examination that proprioceptive function was not recorded and that in patients with a "complete" injury, proprioception may have been intact. A recent study suggests that the presence or absence of proprioception is strongly predictive of neurologic outcome in patients with acute spinal-cord injury. 2 Bracken et al. 3 reported previously that a complete sensory examination (including tests of proprioception) was . . .