***TBI
Psychiatry Research
Volume 113, Issue 3 ,
The association of preceding traumatic brain injury
with mental disorders, alcoholism and criminality: the Northern Finland 1966
Birth Cohort Study
Markku Timonen, , a, b, Jouko Miettunena, Helinä Hakkoa,
Paavo Zittingc, Juha Veijolaa, Lennart von Wendtd and Pirkko Räsänena
The
purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that traumatic brain injury
(TBI) during childhood and adolescence is associated with psychiatric
disorders, heavy alcohol use and criminal offenses in adulthood. We made
use of an unselected, general population birth cohort (n=12 058) in
Brain Inj. 2003 Jul;17(7):561-74.
Who knows best? Awareness of divided
attention difficulty in a neurological rehabilitation setting.
Cock J, Fordham C, Cockburn J, Haggard P.
Department of Psychology,
OBJECTIVE:
To explore whether patients relearning to walk after acquired brain injury and
showing cognitive-motor interference were aware of divided attention
difficulty; whether their perceptions concurred with those of treating staff.
DESIGN: Patients and neurophysiotherapists (from rehabilitation and disabled
wards) completed questionnaires. Factor analyses were applied to responses.
Correlations between responses, clinical measures and experimental decrements
were examined. RESULTS: Patient/staff responses showed some agreement; staff
reported higher levels of perceived difficulty; responses conformed to two
factors. One factor (staff/patients alike) reflected expectations about
functional/motor status and did not correlate with decrements. The other factor
(patients) correlated significantly with dual-task motor decrement, suggesting
some genuine awareness of difficulty (cognitive performance prioritized over
motor control). The other factor (staff) correlated significantly with
cognitive decrement (gait prioritized over sustained attention). CONCLUSIONS: Despite
some inaccurate estimation of susceptibility; patients and staff do exhibit
awareness of divided attention difficulty, but with a limited degree of
concurrence. In fact, our results suggest that patients and staff may be
sensitive to different aspects of the deficit. Rather than 'Who knows best?', it is a question of 'Who knows what?'
J Head Trauma Rehabil. 2003
Mar-Apr;18(2):148-63.
Demographic, medical, and psychiatric
factors in work and marital status after mild head injury.
The
OBJECTIVE:
To explore factors associated with long-term outcomes of work and marital
status in individuals who had experienced a mild head injury (MHI), as well as
those who had not. DESIGN: Population-based study using logistical regression
analyses to investigate the impact of preinjury characteristics on work and
marital status. PARTICIPANTS: Two groups of Vietnam-era Army veterans: 626 who
had experienced a MHI an average of 8 years before examination, and 3,896 who
had not. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Demographic
characteristics, concurrent medical conditions, early life psychiatric
problems, loss of consciousness (LOC), and interactions among these variables
were used to predict current work and marital status. RESULTS: Multiple
variables were associated with work and marital status in the sample with MHI,
accounting for approximately 23% and 17% of the variance in these two outcome
variables, respectively. In contrast, the same factors accounted for
significantly less variance in outcome in the sample without a head
injury-13.3% and 9.4% for work and marital status, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: These
findings suggest a more potent role for and increased vulnerability to the
influence of demographic, medical, and psychiatric factors on outcomes after a
MHI. That is, MHI itself moderates the influence of preinjury
characteristics on work and marital status. In addition, in those who had a
MHI, moderator relationships were found between education and LOC for both work
and marital status. Similarly, complex moderator relationships among race,
region of residence, and LOC were found for both work and marital status
outcomes.
The Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, March-April 2003
v18 i2 p201(3)
Traumatic brain injury: depression, neurogenesis, and
medication management.
Recent
research suggests that depression and chronic stress may not only interfere
with rehabilitation in the obvious ways, but also may cause further cerebral
damage or slow the recovery process. Antidepressants not only effectively
reduce depression, but may also protect against cell death and promote
neurogenesis in that region of the brain linked to memory, a very common
long-term deficit in brain injury. Reports of complications have been few,
but future research needs to clarify the long term effects of antidepressants,
particularly when used with individuals who sustained brain injury.
Mol Pathol. 2003 Jun;56(3):132-6.
Genetic vulnerability following traumatic brain injury:
the role of apolipoprotein E.
Nathoo N, Chetty R, van Dellen JR, Barnett GH;
nathoon@ccf.org
J Consult Clin Psychol. 2003 Aug;71(4):797-804.
Brain injury in battered women.
Department of Psychology,
The goals of the present study were to examine (a) whether
battered women in a sample of both shelter and nonshelter women are sustaining
brain injuries from their partners and (b) if so, whether such brain injuries
are associated with partner abuse severity, cognitive functioning, or
psychopathology. Ninety-nine battered women were assessed using
neuropsychological, psychopathology, and abuse history measures. Almost three
quarters of the sample sustained at least 1 partner-related brain injury and
half sustained multiple partner-related brain injuries. Further, in a subset of
women (n = 57), brain injury severity was negatively associated with
measures of memory, learning, and cognitive flexibility and was positively
associated with partner abuse severity, general distress, anhedonic depression,
worry, anxious arousal, and posttraumatic stress disorder symptoma
J Athl Train. 2001 Sep;36(3):244-248.
Posttraumatic Retrograde and Anterograde Amnesia:
Pathophysiology and Implications in Grading and Safe Return to Play.
Cantu RC.
The importance of not just PTA but all postconcussion signs and
symptoms being absent at rest and exertion before allowing the athlete to
return to play is emphasized.
J Athl Train. 2001 Sep;36(3):288-296.
Implementation of Neuropsychological
Testing Models for the High School, Collegiate, and Professional Sport
Settings.
The
systematic model was designed to incorporate state-of-the-art techniques for
the detection and tracking of neurocognitive deficits associated with
concussion into recently formulated guidelines for the medical management of
sport-related concussion. Current applications of the model are discussed, as
well as ongoing studies designed to elaborate the empirical underpinnings of
the model and refine clinical decision making in this area.
Neuroscience
Volume 121, Issue 2, 315-325 (
Apolipoprotein e4 decreases whereas apolipoprotein e3
increases the level of secreted amyloid precursor protein after closed head
injury, 315-325
Y. Ezra, L. Oron, L. Moskovich, A. D. Roses, S. M. Beni,
E. Shohami and D. M. Michaelson
SummaryPlus | Full Text + Links | PDF (466 K)
Apolipoprotein
E (apoE4) and head trauma are important genetic and environmental risk factors
for Alzheimer's disease. Furthermore, apoE4 increases both the acute and
chronic consequences of head trauma. The latter are associated with the
deposition of amyloid-, which is particularly elevated in apoE4 subjects. The
short-term effects of head injury are associated with transiently increased
metabolism of amyloid precursor protein (APP) and its secreted fragment, APPs.
In the
present study, we examined the possibility that the acute, short-term
pathological effects of apoE4 following head trauma and the corresponding
neuroprotective effects of apoE3 are related to isoform-specific effects of
apoE on APP metabolism. Accordingly, male transgenic mice expressing human
apoE3 or apoE4 on a null mouse apoE background and apoE-deficient and control
mice were subjected to closed head injury (CHI). The resulting effects on brain
APP, and on its secreted products, APPs and secreted product of the -cleavage
of APP (APPs) were then determined 24 h following injury. Immunoblotting
revealed no significant differences between the basal APP, APPs and APPs levels
of the hippocampus or the cortex of the control and the apoE3 and ApoE4
transgenic mice. The apoE-deficient mice also had similar cortical basal levels
of APP and its metabolites, whereas their corresponding basal hippocampal APP
and APPs levels were lower than those of the other groups. CHI lowered the
hipppocampal APPs and APPs levels of the apoE4 transgenic mice, whereas those
of the apoE3 transgenic mice and of the control and apoE-deficient mice were
not affected by this insult. In contrast, CHI raised the cortical APP and APPs
levels of the apoE3 transgenic mice but had no significant effect on those of
the other mice groups. These animal model findings suggest that the acute,
short-term pathological effects of apoE4 following CHI and the corresponding
neuroprotective effects of apoE3 may be mediated by their opposing effects on
the expression and cleavage of cortical and hippocampal APP. Similar
isoform-specific interactions between apoE and APP may play a role in the
acute, short-term effects of head trauma in humans.
Epilepsia, Volume 44 Issue s10 Page
The Epidemiology of Traumatic Brain Injury: A Review
John Bruns, Jr., and W. Allen Hauser;
wahauser@optonline.net
Summary:
Purpose: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) not only has considerable morbidity and
mortality, but it is a major cause of epilepsy. We wish to determine the
frequency of TBI, special groups at risk for TBI, and mortality from TBI.
Clin Exp Neuropsychol. 2003 Oct;25(7):904-17.
Subtypes of emotional and behavioural
sequelae in patients with traumatic brain injury.
Warriner E, Rourke B, Velikonja D, Metham L.
This
study examined patterns of emotional and behavioural sequelae in 300
individuals who sustained a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Participants were
obtained through the Adult Acquired Brain Injury Program at Chedoke Hospital in
Hamilton, Ontario, based on the following inclusionary criteria: (1) single
incident of TBI; (2) no history of additional neurological diseases; (3) time
postinjury </=8.5 years; (4) WAIS-R FSIQ >85 and/or estimated reading
skills above grade 5 level; and (5) valid Minnesota Multiphasic Personality
Inventory (MMPI) profiles (i.e., F<90, L<66, and K<66). MMPI profiles
of these individuals, in randomly split samples of 150 per group, were
subjected to a three-step cluster analytic approach. A six-cluster solution was
adequately replicated across samples and across clustering techniques. The
identified subtypes included profiles indicative of: (1) no concerns or normal
functioning; (2) mild somatic and pain concerns; (3) mild internalizing
difficulties; (4) marked disinhibition and externalizing behavioural
difficulties; (5) marked internalizing difficulties; and (6) marked somatic,
internalizing, and externalizing behavioural disturbances. Members of the
Externalized subtype were significantly younger in age than those in the other
five subtypes, and more likely to be single than those in the Internalized
subtype. Individuals in the Internalized subtype tended to be married, have
longer times postaccident, and lower WAIS-R Verbal Intelligence Quotients than
those comprising the
Inj Prev. 2003 Sep;9(3):257-260.
Effect of
Servadei F, Begliomini C, Gardini E, Giustini M, Taggi F,
Kraus J.
OBJECTIVES:
To evaluate the impact of a revised Italian motorcycle-moped-scooter helmet law
on crash brain injuries. DESIGN: A pre-post law evaluation of helmet use and
traumatic brain injury (TBI) occurrence from 1999 to 2001. SETTING:
J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry.
2003 Aug;74(8):1047-52.
Long term neuropsychological outcome after head injury:
relation to APOE genotype.
Millar K, Nicoll JA, Thornhill S,
BACKGROUND:
Existing evidence suggests that some patients who sustain a head injury suffer
cognitive decline many years later, and that head injury and possession of the
APOE epsilon 4 allele are each risk factors for
Alzheimer's disease. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether late cognitive decline
after head injury is more prevalent among carriers of APOE epsilon 4. METHODS:
A database of head injured patients was used. Initial assessment was at the
time of their injury, between 1968 and 1985, and outcome data at six months
were available. Their ages at the time of injury ranged between 2 and 70 years.
A cohort of 396 subjects was reassessed at a mean of 18 years later, with
determination of APOE genotype and detailed neuropsychological testing. RESULTS:
Judging by the Glasgow outcome scale, twice as many patients had deteriorated
as improved between six months after injury and the late assessment; 22.2% of
APOE epsilon 4 carriers had a good late outcome compared with 30.5% of
non-carriers (95% confidence interval for the difference, -0.7% to 17.2%; p =
0.084). There were no clear differences between epsilon 4 carriers and
non-carriers in detailed neuropsychological assessments. CONCLUSIONS: Although
this study provides additional evidence that a late decline may occur after
head injury, there was no clear relation to APOE genotype. Despite the follow
up interval of 15 to 25 years, the cohort is still too young (mean age 42.1
years) to assess the risk of Alzheimer's disease.
Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging
Volume 124, Issue 3 ,
Cerebral blood flow in chronic symptomatic mild
traumatic brain injury
Omer Bonne, Asaf Gilboa, Yoram Louzoun, Orli Kempf-Sherf,
Maor Katz, Yeri Fishman, Zila Ben-Nahum, Yodphat Krausz, Moshe Bocher, Hava
Lester, Roland Chisin and Bernard Lerer
Patients
with mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) (Journal of Head Trauma and
Rehabilitation, 8, 1993, 83–84) challenge physicians' skills and test their
patience. Their manifold symptoma
Neuroscience Letters , Article in
Press
Stimulus complexity enhances auditory discrimination in
patients with extremely severe brain injuries
B. Kotchoubey, S. Lang, E. Herb, P. Maurer, D. Schmalohr,
V. Bostanova and N. Birbaumera
There is
controversy as to what extent the processing of spectrally rich sounds in the
human auditory cortex is related to the processing of singular frequencies. An
informative index of the function of the auditory cortex, particularly
important in neurological patients, is the mismatch negativity (MMN), a
component of auditory event-related potentials. In the present study the MMN
was recorded in 79 patients with extremely severe diffuse brain injuries, most
of them in persistent vegetative state or minimal consciousness state. Both
sinusoidal (`pure') and complex musical tones were used. Different statistical
approaches converged in that musical tones elicited an MMN significantly more
frequently, and of a larger amplitude, than simple sine tones. This implies
that using simple stimuli in clinical populations may lead to a severe
underestimation of the functional state of a patient's auditory system. The
findings are also in line with behavioral and physiological data indicating
independent processing of complex sounds in the auditory cortex.
Kortte, Kathleen Bech
Anosognosia and Denial: Their Relationship to Coping
and Depression in Acquired Brain Injury.
Rehabilitation Psychology.
48(3):131-136, August 2003.
Objective:
To evaluate relations among denial, anosognosia, coping strategies, and
depression in persons with brain injury.
Study Design: Correlational.
Setting: A
The British Journal of Psychiatry (2003) 183: 276-278
EDITORIAL: Post-concussion syndrome: clarity amid the
controversy?
NIGEL S. KING, ClinPsyD
Post-concussion
syndrome has presented clinicians with controversy and intrigue for at least
130 years. Its symptoms, which often follow uncomplicated mild head injury
(post-traumatic amnesia <1h, Glasgow Coma Scale score 13–15, loss of
consciousness <15 min) and moderate head injury (post-traumatic amnesia 1–24
h, Glasgow Coma Scale score 9–12, loss of consciousness 15 min to 6 h),
commonly include headache, dizziness, fatigue, poor memory, poor concentration,
irritability, depression, sleep disturbance, frustration, restlessness,
sensitivity to noise, blurred vision, double vision, photophobia, nausea and
tinnitus (King, 1997). Debate and argument have always plagued this syndrome,
but research over the past decade or so has helped to clarify some of the areas
of dispute and some interventions have been developed and evaluated. What
follows is an attempt to illuminate the syndrome in the light of these
developments.
Bruce, Jared M., Echemendia, Ruben J.
Delayed-Onset Deficits in Verbal Encoding Strategies Among Patients With Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.
Knowledge
obtained from longitudinal animal models was used to predict the course of
verbal memory deficits in 19 concussed patients and 19 control patients who
were given versions of the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test-Revised at 2 hr, 48 hr,
and 1 week postconcussion. The physiological literature suggests that concussed
patients should exhibit a decline in performance from 2 hr to 48 hr
postconcussion on a measure of complex memory strategies. Consistent with this
hypothesis, mixed-factor analysis of covariance revealed that concussed
patients used less semantic clustering strategies than control patients at 48
hr postconcussion, whereas minimal differences were found at 2 hr postinjury.
Furthermore, a chi-square analysis showed that a significant number of
concussed patients experienced a decline in the number of semantic clusters
they used from 2 hr to 48 hr. No differences were found between the groups at
the 1-week testing session.
How robust is performance on the National Adult Reading
Test following traumatic brain injury?
Gerard A. Riley ; Lincoln V.
Simmonds
British Journal of Clinical Psychology Volume: 42 Part: 3 Page: 319 -- 328
Objective. To investigate whether National
Adult Reading Test (NART) performance may be impaired by severe traumatic brain
injury (TBI). Method.
A sample of 26 people who had been given a NART within 12 months of a severe
TBI was given a second NART at least 12 months after the first NART. Results. Mean
performance on the second NART was significantly better than performance on the
first NART. Of the participants, 11 (42%) showed an improvement of more than 5
IQ points in respect of the verbal IQ estimates based on their NART scores,
with three participants showing an improvement of 20 points. In applying the
NART to determine the presence of an acquired intellectual impairment, use of
the first NART scores alone would have resulted in such impairments being
missed in at least 25% of a subsample of 16 participants for whom an actual
verbal IQ had been obtained at the time of the first NART. Conclusion. An NART
given within 12 months of a severe TBI runs the risk of significantly
underestimating pre-morbid IQ. If applied in this context, it is
recommended that the NART score is used in conjunction with other methods of
estimation, such as those based on demographic data.
Neuropsychologia, Article in Press
Deficits in facial emotion perception in adults with
recent traumatic brain injury
We
examined whether facial emotion perception was compromised in adults with
recent traumatic brain injury (TBI). Few studies have examined emotion
perception in TBI; those that have, examined chronic patients only. Recent and
chronic TBI populations differ according to degree of functional reorganization
of the brain, use of compensatory strategies, and severity of cognitive
impairments––any of which might differentially affect presentation of emotion
perception deficits. A secondary aim of the study was to utilize the TBI
population––in whom diffuse axonal injury (DAI) is a cardinal neurological
feature––to examine the suggestion of Adolphs et al. [Journal of Neuroscience
20(7) (2000) 2683] suggestion that damage to white matter tracts should give
rise to emotion perception deficits. Methods: Thirty TBI participants and 30
age-matched controls were tested. A 2×3 mixed design was employed. The
dependent variable was accuracy on neutral and emotional face perception tests.
Results: (1) The TBI group performed significantly less accurately than the
matched controls on the facial emotion perception tasks, whereas the groups
performed equivalently on a non-emotional face perception control task. (2) A
sub-group of TBI participants without evidence of focal injury to areas of the
brain most commonly implicated in facial emotion perception was as impaired on
the emotion perception tasks as a second sub-group who had sustained focal
lesions to these areas. This suggests an alternative neurological mechanism for
deficits in the first sub-group, such as DAI. Conclusions: Patients with
recently acquired TBI are impaired in their ability to perceive emotions in
faces. DAI alone may cause can give rise to facial
emotion perception deficits.
Archives of Clinical
Cognitive factors in Postconcussion Syndrome symptom
report
John Gunstad and Julie A. Suhr
Past
studies suggest a variety of factors that influence the report of
Postconcussion Syndrome (PCS) symptoms, including head injury, depression,
pain, and subjective expectation. Participants included 190 undergraduates
across 8 groups chosen to examine the relative contribution of these factors,
as well as treatment-seeking behavior, in the report of both current and past
PCS symptoms. Depressed persons, depressed persons receiving treatment,
and headache sufferers receiving treatment reported elevated rates of PCS
symptoms when compared to controls. Five of the eight groups reported
experiencing more current than past symptoms. Head-injured persons and headache
sufferers underestimated premorbid symptom rates relative to the baseline of
controls. These findings are consistent with the growing number of studies
that suggest non-neurologic factors may be more closely related to PCS symptom
report than head injury status and raise further concern regarding use of
self-reported PCS symptoms in the diagnosis of head injury.
Archives of Clinical
Validation of the Meyers Short
John E. Meyers, and Martin L.
Rohling
This
manuscript reports the results of two studies focusing on patients with mild
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). The first assesses the validity of the Meyers
Short Battery (MSB) of neuropsychological tests. The second study reports on
the reliability of the MSB. The groups consisted of normal controls, depressed,
chronic pain patients, and patients with mild TBI. Validity was assessed using
a discriminant function analysis comparing the non-TBI participants with the
TBI participants, which showed a 96.1% correct classification rate. When
patients were assessed at least 6 months post-injury and re-assessment 12–14
months later, an overall reliability of r=.86 was obtained. This indicates that
the MSB has adequate psychometric properties for clinical use. The results
are consistent with previous published research indicating that the MSB is
sensitive not only to the presence of mild TBI but also to the degree of
cognitive impairment based on loss of consciousness.
(Note: only 4% (7/160 total subjects (all
noncompensation seekers) were excluded for flunking >=2 validity tests.
Major Depression Following Traumatic Brain Injury
Ricardo E. Jorge, MD;
Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2004;61(1):42-50.
Backgroud Major
depression is a frequent psychiatric complication among patients with traumatic
brain injury (TBI). To our knowledge, however, the clinical correlates of major
depression have not been extensively studied.
Objective To
determine the clinical, neuropsychological, and structural neuroimaging
correlates of major depression occurring after TBI. Design Prospective, case-controlled,
surveillance study conducted during the first year after the traumatic episode
occurred.
Psychiatric Illness Following Traumatic Brain Injury in
an Adult Health Maintenance Organization Population
Jesse R. Fann, MD, MPH; Bart Burington, MS; Alexandra
Leonetti, MS; Kenneth Jaffe, MD; Wayne J. Katon, MD;
Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2004;61:53-61.
Background Psychiatric
illness after traumatic brain injury (TBI) has been shown to be prevalent in
hospitalized and tertiary care patient populations. Objective To determine the risk of psychiatric
illness after TBI in an adult health maintenance organization population. Design Prospective cohort study. Setting Large staff-model health maintenance
organization. Participants Nine hundred thirty-nine health plan
members diagnosed as having TBI in 1993 and enrolled in the prior year, during
which no TBI was ascertained. Three health plan members per TBI-exposed subject
were randomly selected as unexposed comparisons, matched for age, sex, and
reference date. Main Outcome
Measure Psychiatric illness in the 3
years after the TBI reference date, determined using computerized records of
psychiatric diagnoses according to the International Classification of
Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification, prescriptions, and service
utilization. Results Prevalence of any psychiatric illness
in the first year was 49% following moderate to severe TBI, 34% following mild
TBI, and 18% in the comparison group. Among subjects without psychiatric
illness in the prior year, the adjusted relative risk for any psychiatric
illness in the 6 months following moderate to severe TBI was 4.0 (95%
confidence interval [CI], 2.4-6.8) and following mild TBI was 2.8 (95% CI,
2.1-3.7; P<.001) compared with those without TBI. Among subjects with prior
psychiatric illness, the adjusted relative risk for any psychiatric illness in
the 6 months following moderate to severe TBI was 2.1 (95% CI, 1.3-3.3) and
following mild TBI was 1.6 (95% CI, 1.2-2.0; P = .005). Prior psychiatric
illness significantly modified the relationship between TBI and subsequent
psychiatric illness (P = .04) and was a significant predictor (P<.001).
Persons with mild TBI and prior psychiatric illness had evidence of persisting
psychiatric illness. Conclusions Both moderate to severe and
mild TBI are associated with an increased risk of subsequent psychiatric
illness. Whereas moderate to severe TBI is associated with a higher initial
risk, mild TBI may be associated with persistent psychiatric illness.
Journal of Clinical and Experimental
2003, Vol.25, No.8, pp. 1090-1101
Social Support Moderates Caregiver Life Satisfaction
Following Traumatic Brain Injury
Tanya C. Ergh,
Social
support is an important determinant of adjustment following traumatic brain
injury (TBI) sustained by a family member. The present study examined the
extent to which social support moderates the influence of characteristics of
the person with injury on caregiver subjective well-being. Sixty pairs of
individuals who had sustained a moderate to severe TBI and their caregivers
(N=120) participated. Years postinjury ranged from 0.3 to 9.9 (M=4.8, SD=2.6).
Cognitive, functional, and neurobehavioral functioning of participants with TBI
were assessed using neuropsychological tests and rating scales. Caregiver life
satisfaction and perceived social support were assessed using self-report
questionnaires. Results indicated that time since injury was unrelated to life
satisfaction. Neurobehavioral disturbances showed an inverse relation with life
satisfaction. Social support emerged as an important moderator of life
satisfaction. Only among caregivers with low social support was cognitive
dysfunction adversely related to life satisfaction. Similarly, a trend
suggested that patient unawareness of deficit was associated with caregiver
life dissatisfaction only among caregivers with low social support. In
contrast, these characteristics were unrelated to life satisfaction among
caregivers with adequate social support.
Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2004 Jan;83(1):22-6.
Effect of co-morbid traumatic brain
injury on functional outcome of persons with spinal cord injuries.
Macciocchi SN, Bowman B, Coker J, Apple D, Leslie D.
OBJECTIVE: This
study was undertaken to determine if persons who sustain a spinal cord injury
(SCI) and co-morbid brain injury (dual diagnosis [DDS]) evidence smaller
functional gains and experience significantly longer rehabilitation lengths of
stay than persons with only an SCI. DESIGN: This retrospective comparison study
was performed at a 100-bed rehabilitation hospital specializing in acute SCI
and traumatic brain injury rehabilitation. Summary scale outcome data of
persons who sustained an SCI were compared with outcome data of a group of
persons with a DDS. Comparisons were established by matching groups principally
on level of SCI and admission Motor FIM trade mark score and secondarily on
education, sex, and age. Outcome measures included admission Motor and
Cognitive FIM score, discharge Motor and Cognitive FIM score, Motor and
Cognitive FIM change, length of stay, and rehabilitation charges. RESULTS:
Persons with a DDS evidenced a significantly more impaired Cognitive FIM score
at admission and discharge from rehabilitation. Persons with a DDS also
achieved a significantly lower Motor FIM change than persons with SCI. There
were no significant differences between DDS and SCI groups regarding Cognitive
FIM change, length of stay, or rehabilitation charges. Injury severity as
defined by the Glasgow Coma Scale or intracranial lesions did not predict
response to treatment in the DDS group. CONCLUSION: Persons with a DDS achieved
smaller functional gains during rehabilitation than peers with SCI. Brain
injuries seem to limit functional gains, although the relationship between
brain injury severity and functional change is not linear. Prospective studies
are needed to identify factors limiting functional gains in rehabilitation and
assist in developing specific treatment programs for persons with SCI and brain
injury.
Retrieval Inhibition in Directed Forgetting FollowingSevere
Closed-Head Injury
Maureen Schmitter-Edgecombe, William Marks, Matthew J.
Wright, Matthew Ventura
A variant
of the list method directed forgetting procedure was used to examine the role
of inhibition in memory performance following severe closed-head injury (CHI).
Twenty-four participants with severe CHI and 24 controls studied picture and
word stimuli in both forget and remember conditions. Memory testing for the
to-be-forgotten and to-be-remembered items consisted of a free-recall test
followed by a source-monitoring task. Despite poorer recall performance, the
participants with CHI exhibited a directed forgetting effect similar to that in
controls. Item recognition scores indicated that the inhibited items were not
forgotten but rather were items whose accessibility had been lowered. These
findings suggest that residual memory deficits in patients with severe CHI are
unlikely to reflect inefficient retrieval inhibition.
Archives of Clinical
The construct of problem solving in higher level
neuropsychological assessment and rehabilitation
Joseph F. Rath, Donna M. Langenbahn, Dvorah Simon, Rose
Lynn Sherr, Jason Fletcher and Leonard Diller
Three
inter-related studies examine the construct of problem solving as it relates to
the assessment of deficits in higher level outpatients with traumatic brain
injury (TBI). Sixty-one persons with TBI and 58 uninjured participants completed
measures of problem solving and conceptually related constructs, which included
neuropsychological tests, self-report inventories, and roleplayed scenarios. In
Study I, TBI and control groups performed with no significant differences on
measures of memory, reasoning, and executive function, but medium to large
between-group differences were found on timed attention tasks. The largest
between-group differences were found on psychosocial and problem-solving
self-report inventories. In Study II, significant-other (SO) ratings of patient
functioning were consistent with patient self-report, and for both self-report
and SO ratings of patient problem solving, there was a theoretically meaningful
pattern of correlations with timed attention tasks. In Study III, a combination
of self-report inventories that accurately distinguished between participants
with and without TBI, even when cognitive tests scores were in the normal
range, was determined. The findings reflect intrinsic differences in
measurement approaches to the construct of problem solving and suggest the
importance of using a multidimensional approach to assessment.
Archives of Clinical
A longitudinal, controlled study of patient complaints
following treated mild traumatic brain injury
Shauna Kashluba, Chris Paniak, Treena Blake, Shawn
Reynolds, Geraldine Toller-Lobe and Julianna Nagy
This
study provided 3-month follow-up data to a previous paper that compared symptom
complaints of patients with mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) with those of
non-injured control participants within 1 month of injury. The 110 MTBI
patients and 118 control participants were group-matched on age, gender,
education level, and socioeconomic status. As a group, MTBI patients no longer
endorsed significantly more symptoms (M=14.09, S.D.=10.77)
than did the control group (M=12.56, S.D.=8.46, P=.232). Only 3 of the 43
queried symptoms were endorsed by significantly more (Bonferroni-corrected
P<.00116) MTBI patients than controls. Using the same Bonferroni-corrected
criteria, 10 of the 43 symptoms were endorsed at a significantly higher
severity level by MTBI patients. Overall, the treated MTBI group's symptom
complaints diminished from baseline to 3 months post-injury, with relatively few
differences remaining between the two groups.