Table 1.
Summary of included papers
| Study | Design | Ultra-early definition* | Late definition* | Injury location | Follow-up (months) | Severity | Score | Improvement definition | Mean age (years) | No. of males | No. of ultra-early | No. of late |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aarabi, 2017; USA | R-C | 12 | >12 | Cervical | 6 | A-C | AIS | at least 1 grade | 39.5 | 89 | 51 | 49 |
| Aarabi, 2020; USA | R-C | 12 | 12-24; >24 | Cervical | 6 | A-C | AIS | at least 1 grade | 46 | 60 | 32 | 40 |
| Biglari, 2016; Germany | P-C | 4 | 4 to 24 | All levels | 6 | A-C | AIS | at least 1 grade | 43.37 | 40 | 29 | 22 |
| Burke, 2019; USA | R-C | 12 | 12-24; >24 | Cervical | NR | A-C | AIS | at least 1 grade | 56.5 | 38 | 18 | 30 |
| Cengiz, 2008; Turkey | RCT | 8 | >72 | Th2-L2 | 14.5 | A-C | AIS | at least 1 grade | 41.4 | 18 | 12 | 15 |
| Dobran, 2015; Italy | P-C | 12 | 12 to 72 | Cervical | 24 | A-D | AIS | at least 1 grade | 50.2 | 44 | 27 | 30 |
| Gaebler., 1999; Austria | R-C | 8 | >8 | Thoracic-lumbar | 68 | A-D | Frankel | at least 1 grade | 32.6 | 56 | 24 | 43 |
| Grassner, 2016; Germany | R-C | 8 | >8 | Cervical | 12 | A-D | AIS | at least 1 grade | 51 | 59 | 35 | 35 |
| Jug, 2015; Slovenia | P-C | 8 | 8 to 24 | Cervical | 6 | A-C | AIS | at least 1 grade | 47.3 | 34 | 22 | 20 |
| Lee, 2018; Korea | R-C | 8 | 8 to 24 | All levels | 6 | A-C | AIS | at least 1 grade | 48 | 35 | 26 | 30 |
| Mattiassich, 2017; Austria | R-C | 5 | 5 to 24 | Cervical | 6 | A-D | AIS | at least 1 grade | 50 | 38 | 33 | 16 |
| McCarthy, 2011; Australia | R-C | 8 | >8 | Cervical | 6 | A-D | AIS | at least 1 grade | NR | 31 | 17 | 25 |
| Nagata, 2016; Japan | R-C | 6 | 6 to 11 | Cervical | 13.8 | A-B | AIS | at least 1 grade | 54 | 28 | 21 | 9 |
| Nasi, 2019; Italy | R-C | 12 | 12 to 48 | Cervical | 12 | A-D | AIS | at least 1 grade | 57.8 | 58 | 40 | 41 |
| Tsuji, 2019; Japan | R-C | 8 | >8 | Cervical | 6 | A-D | AIS | at least 1 grade | 71.8 | 35 | 10 | 23 |
| Wutte, 2020; Germany | R-C | 8 | >8 | Cervical | 12 | A-D | AIS | at least 1 grade | 48.7 | 34 | 32 | 11 |
NR: Not reported; P-C: Prospective cohort; RCT: Randomized clinical trial; R-C: Retrospective cohort; AIS: American Spinal Injury Association impairment scale.
*, hours after spinal cord injury.