Lifetime Direct Costs After Spinal Cord Injury

Abstract

Applying the latest data from the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center, we update the average lifetime direct costs of spinal cord injury (SCI) in the United States. Assuming that health care price inflation equals future interest rates, the lifetime direct costs for persons injured at age 25 vary by severity of injury, ranging from 2.1 to 5.4 million dollars, which are much higher than what has been expected based on inflation-adjusted data from 1992. This increase is attributable to both the improvement in life expectancy in the SCI population and an increase in costs of care after SCI.