Centros de pesquisa do mundo inteiro vêm realizando estudos sobre qualidade de vida em diversas condições crônicas, com o intuito principal de promover intervenções que venham de encontro à sua melhoria. Este fato se estende aos pacientes portadores de lesão medular. Este é um estudo com o objetivo de avaliar a qualidade de vida das pessoas portadoras de lesão medular traumática, na cidade de Fortaleza, Ceará, Brasil. Participaram do estudo 32 pacientes paraplégicos adultos com lesão medular completa, de etiologia traumática, a maioria do sexo masculino, idade entre 20 a 47 anos e entre 5 a 10 anos de lesão. O instrumento utilizado para coleta dos dados foi o The MOS 36-item Short-Form Health Survey. Como resultado foi encontrado que o paciente com lesão medular traumática possui grande comprometimento de sua qualidade de vida, em todos os seus domínios, principalmente no que se refere aos "aspectos sociais".

After spinal cord injury is common functionality is affected. Objective: To evaluate the functionality of patients with spinal cord injury. Method: Cross-sectional study by means of the International Classification of Functionality (ICF). 109 adults with spinal cord injury in the city of Curitiba, Brazil were evaluated. Results: The categories most compromised in body were intestines and bladder, sexuality, energy, sleep, emotion and weight. In the domain activities and participation, there was greater difficulty in tasks of bathing, toilet and dressing, self care and leisure. In the domain environmental factors, the categories classified as facilitators were: medications, orthoses and wheelchair, attitude of family, transport, social foresight and health services. The categories classified as barriers were: attitude of authorities, social attitudes, education and work. Conclusion: The application of the ICF in persons with spinal cord injury demonstrated a series of disabilities and limitations.

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This was a descriptive cross-sectional study on patients with spinal cord injuries living in Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil. The aim was to evaluate the pain characteristics among such patients seen at referral care centers for spinal cord injury patients in Curitiba. A total of 109 adults with spinal cord injury in this city were evaluated regarding the presence of pain, especially neuropathic pain. Neuropathic pain was evaluated using the DN4 questionnaire, a universal instrument that has been translated and validated for Portuguese. A visual analog scale (VAS) was used to evaluate the intensity of pain. The prevalence of pain among these 109 patients was 31.2% (34 patients). The nociceptive pain presented was classified as musculoskeletal pain (nine patients), visceral pain (four patients) and mixed pain (one patient), thus totaling 14 patients (12.8%). Another 20 patients (18.3%) showed symptoms of neuropathic pain and fulfilled the criteria for neuropathic pain with scores greater than 4 out 10 in the DN4 questionnaire. Regarding the characteristics of the patients with neuropathic pain, most of them were male, younger than 40 years of age and paraplegic with incomplete lesions. They had become injured from 1 to more than 5 years earlier.The predominant etiology was gunshot wounds, and the intensity of their pain was high, with VAS scores greater than 5. This study partially corroborates other studies conducted on this subject. Studies of this type are important for understanding the profile of these patients, for the purpose of designing strategies for their rehabilitation, with a focus on the appropriate treatment and management of pain. Key words: neuropathic pain, spinal cord injury, DN4 questionnaire. Dor neuropática em pessoas com lesão medular residentes em Curitiba (Brasil) RESUMO Estudo transversal descritivo em pacientes com lesão medular que residem em Curitiba, Paraná, Brasil. O objetivo foi avaliar as características da dor em pacientes com lesão medular acompanhados em Centros de Reabilitação de referência na cidade. Os sujeitos envolvidos na pesquisa foram 109 pacientes adultos com lesão medular. Foi avaliada a presença de dor, principalmente dor neuropática, mediante aplicação do Questionário DN4, um instrumento universal traduzido e validado para o português. A Escala Visual Analógica (EVA) também foi usada para avaliar a intensidade da dor. A prevalência de dor nos 109 pacientes avaliados foi de 31,2%, ou seja, 34 pacientes. Destes, nove apresentaram dor nociceptiva classificada como músculo-esquelética, quatro dor visceral e um paciente apresentou dor mista, totalizando 14 pacientes (12,8%). Além disso, 20 pacientes (18,3%) apresentaram dor neuropática, cumprindo os critérios para este tipo de dor com uma contagem superior a 4/10 para o DN4. Sobre as características dos pacientes com dor neuropática, a maioria era do sexo masculino, abaixo de 40 anos, paraplégico com lesão incompleta e tempo de evolução entre um e cinco anos de lesão. A etiologia Correspondence Janaína Vall