Early rehabilitation after spinal cord injury: a scoping review protocol

Objective: The objective of this scoping review is to identify the timings and types of early rehabilitation after spinal cord injury (SCI) that are documented in the literature, as well as identify possible research gaps in this field. Introduction: Preclinical and clinical studies support the idea that early rehabilitation may be beneficial for patients with acute SCI. However, the timings and types of rehabilitation that should and could be used in the acute stage are still unclear. The first step towards such knowledge is to extensively review what is documented in the literature. Inclusion criteria: This review will consider all papers focusing on early rehabilitation after SCI in adult humans or animals (<3 months' post-SCI for humans and other primates and <3 weeks' post-SCI for other animals). Interventions in the included papers must aim at sensorimotor or functional improvement and take place in a hospital or a rehabilitation center if they target human subjects. This review will include published and unpublished experimental and observational studies, research protocols, conference abstracts, systematic reviews, and guidelines. Methods: MEDLINE (PubMed), Scopus, Embase, PEDro, Web of Science Core Collection, CINAHL (EBSCOhost), Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane CENTRAL, PROSPERO, ClinicalTrials.gov, and gray literature sources will be searched for eligible articles. No language or date limits will be applied. Two independent reviewers will perform study selection and data extraction, and the results will be presented according to the SCI type and severity.