Abstract: BACKGROUND: At present, there are some limitations in evaluating the severity of acute spinal cord injury, and a rapid and accurate evaluation method is urgently needed.
OBJECTIVE: To analyze the correlation between the expression levels of serum oxidative stress and nerve injury indexes and the severity of the disease in patients with acute spinal cord injury.
METHODS: A total of 65 patients were included in the study from August 2020 to May 2022, including 32 patients in the experimental group (acute spinal cord injury) and 33 patients in the control group (simple spinal fracture). American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) Impairment Scale and neurological function score were evaluated within 8 hours of admission. Meanwhile, serum levels of superoxide dismutase, malondialdehyde, glutathione, nitric oxide, glial fibrillary acidic protein and neuron-specific enolase were detected and compared between the two groups. The correlation between the expression levels of the above serological indicators in serum and ASIA impairment grade and AISA neural function score was analyzed.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The average serum levels of superoxide dismutase and glutathione in the experimental group were significantly lower than those of the control group (P < 0.001), while the average serum levels of malondialdehyde, nitric oxide, glial fibrillary acidic protein and neuron-specific enolase in the experimental group were higher than those of the control group (P < 0.01). The serum levels of superoxide dismutase and glutathione in the experimental group were positively correlated with the damage grade of AISA (r=0.862 4, 0.849 3, P < 0.01), while the serum levels of malondialdehyde, nitric oxide, glial fibrillary acidic protein and neuron-specific enolase were negatively correlated with the damage grade of AISA (r=-0.866 1, -0.638 1, -0.746 6, P < 0.001), and the serum level of nitric oxide was not significantly correlated with the damage grade of AISA (r=-0.177 5, P > 0.05). The serum level of glutathione in the experimental group was positively correlated with AISA sensory function scores (r=0.569 9, P < 0.001), while the serum levels of malondialdehyde, glial fibrillary acidic protein and neuron-specific enolase were negatively correlated with AISA sensory function scores (r=-0.574 1, -0.099 2, -0.708 6, P < 0.05), and the serum levels of superoxide dismutase and nitric oxide were not significantly correlated with AISA sensory function scores (r=0.230 8, -0.376 2, P > 0.05). The serum levels of superoxide dismutase and glutathione in the experimental group were positively correlated with ASIA motor function scores (r=0.380, 0.524 7, P < 0.05); the serum levels of malondialdehyde, glial fibrillary acidic protein and neuron-specific enolase were negatively correlated with AISA motor function scores (r=-0.577 9,  -0.452 2,  -0.662 8, P < 0.05); and the level of nitric oxide had no significant correlation with AISA motor function scores (r=-0.049 7, 
P > 0.05).To conclude, the serum levels of superoxide dismutase, malondialdehyde, glutathione, nitric oxide, glial fibrillary acidic protein and neuron-specific enolase in serum of patients with acute spinal cord injury are significantly correlated with ASIA impairment grade and ASIA neural function score, which could be used as biomarkers for early clinical assessment of disease severity.

Key words: acute spinal cord injury, AISA grading, marker, oxidative stress, nerve injury