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Objectives: To determine (1) the frequency of the need for more help with activities of daily living (ADLs), (2) the frequency of medical complications, and (3) the association between medical, injury-related, and sociodemographic factors and the need for more help with ADLs among those aging with spinal cord injury (SCI)., Design: Cross-sectional survey., Setting: General community, international., Participants: Volunteers (N=352) with SCI for more than 20 years., Interventions: Not applicable., Main Outcome Measure: The need for more help with ADLs., Results: The need for more help with ADLs during the last 3 years was reported by 32.1% of participants. At least 1 medical complication was reported by 85%. Constipation (47.9%), diarrhea/bowel accidents (41.8%), and pressure ulcers (38.7%) were common. Constipation, pressure ulcers, female gender, and years postinjury were associated with needing more help with ADLs. Constipation and pressure ulcers were associated with a 97% and a 76% increase, respectively, in the likelihood of needing more help with ADLs during a 3-year time period. Female gender was associated with a 96% increased odds of needing more help with ADLs. There was a 42% increased odds of needing more help with ADLs per decade after SCI., Conclusions: People aging with SCI are vulnerable to medical complications, and additional help is required to function. Knowledge of the effect of these factors, particularly the tetrad of constipation, pressure ulcers, female gender, and number of years postinjury, should increase awareness that more help with ADLs may be needed over time.

Objective: To quantify relationships among 3 sets of factors: demographic factors, health and disability factors, and quality of life (QOL)., Design: Part of a program of longitudinal research on aging and spinal cord injury (SCI) involving 3 populations: American, British, and Canadian. The present analysis uses data from the 1999 interval., Setting: The Canadian sample was derived from the member database of the Ontario and Manitoba divisions of the Canadian Paraplegic Association. The British sample was recruited from a national and a regional SCI center in England. The American sample was recruited through a hospital in Colorado., Participants: A sample of 352 participants was assembled from 4 large, well-established databases. The sample included individuals who had incurred an SCI at least 20 years earlier, were admitted to rehabilitation within 1 year of injury, and were between the ages of 15 and 55 at the time of injury., Interventions: Not applicable., Main Outcome Measures: A combination of self-completed questionnaires and interviews. Data included demographics, injury-related variables, health and disability-related factors, QOL, and perceptions about aging., Results: Using linear structural relationships modeling, we found that QOL was affected both directly and indirectly by age, health and disability problems, and perceptions of aging. Two surprising findings were as follows: those who experienced fewer disability-related problems were more likely to report a qualitative disadvantage in aging, and the younger members of the sample were more likely to report fatigue., Conclusions: Fatigue is a concern because of the relationship of fatigue with perceived temporal disadvantage in aging, health problems, and disability problems. This finding highlights the need for clinical vigilance among those just beginning to experience the effects of aging.