Early predictors of outcome after mild traumatic brain injury (UPFRONT): an observational cohort study

Publication date: July 2017 Source:The Lancet Neurology, Volume 16, Issue 7 Author(s): Joukje van der Naalt, Marieke E Timmerman, Myrthe E de Koning, Harm J van der Horn, Myrthe E Scheenen, Bram Jacobs, Gerard Hageman, Tansel Yilmaz, Gerwin Roks, Jacoba M Spikman Background Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) accounts for most cases of TBI, and many patients show incomplete long-term functional recovery. We aimed to create a prognostic model for functional outcome by combining demographics, injury severity, and psychological factors to identify patients at risk for incomplete recovery at 6 months. In particular, we investigated additional indicators of emotional distress and coping style at 2 weeks above early predictors measured at the emergency department. Methods The UPFRONT study was an observational cohort study done at the emergency departments of three level-1 trauma centres in the Netherlands, which included patients with mTBI, defined by a Glasgow Coma Scale score of 13–15 and either post-traumatic amnesia lasting less than 24 h or loss of consciousness for less than 30 min. Emergency department predictors were measured either on admission with mTBI—comprising injury severity (GCS score, post-traumatic amnesia, and CT abnormalities), demographics (age, gender, educational level, pre-injury mental health, and previous brain injury), and physical conditions (alcohol use on the day of injury, neck pain, headache, nausea, dizziness)—or at 2 weeks, when ...
Source: The Lancet Neurology - Category: Neurology Source Type: research