Mild Traumatic Brain Injuries and Risk for Affective and Behavioral Disorders.

OBJECTIVES: Recent studies document an association between mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBIs) in children and postinjury psychiatric disorders. However. these studies were subject to limitations in the design, lack of long-term follow-up, and poorly defined psychiatric outcomes. This study determines the incidence and relative risk of postinjury new affective and behavior disorders 4 years after mTBIs. METHODS: A cohort study of mTBI cases and matched comparisons within an integrated health care system. The mTBI group included patients ≤17 years of age, diagnosed with mTBI from 2000 to 2014 (N = 18 917). Comparisons included 2 unexposed patients (N = 37 834) per each mTBI-exposed patient, randomly selected and matched for age, sex, race/ethnicity, and date of medical visit (reference date to mTBI injury). Outcomes included a diagnosis of affective or behavioral disorders in the 4 years after mTBI or the reference date. RESULTS: Adjusted risks for affective disorders were significantly higher across the first 3 years after injury for the mTBI group, especially during the second year, with a 34% increase in risk. Adjusted risks for behavioral disorders were significant at years 2 and 4, with up to a 37% increase in risk. The age group with the highest risk for postinjury affective and behavioral disorders was 10- to 13-year-old patients. CONCLUSIONS: Sustaining an mTBI significantly increased the risks of having a new affective or behavioral disorder up to 4 years after injury. Initial and ongoing screening for affective and behavior disorders following an mTBI can identify persistent conditions that may pose barriers to recovery.

The American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Diagnostic Criteria for Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.

OBJECTIVE: To develop new diagnostic criteria for mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) that are appropriate for use across the lifespan and in sports, civilian trauma, and military settings. DESIGN: Rapid evidence reviews on 12 clinical questions and Delphi method for expert consensus. PARTICIPANTS: The Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Task Force of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Brain Injury Special Interest Group convened a Working Group of 17 members and an external interdisciplinary expert panel of 32 clinician-scientists. Public stakeholder feedback was analyzed from 68 individuals and 23 organizations. RESULTS: The first 2 Delphi votes asked the expert panel to rate their agreement with both the diagnostic criteria for mild TBI and the supporting evidence statements. In the first round, 10 of 12 evidence statements reached consensus agreement. Revised evidence statements underwent a second round of expert panel voting, where consensus was achieved for all. For the diagnostic criteria, the final agreement rate, after the third vote, was 90.7%. Public stakeholder feedback was incorporated into the diagnostic criteria revision prior to the third expert panel vote. A terminology question was added to the third round of Delphi voting, where 30 of 32 (93.8%) expert panel members agreed that 'the diagnostic label 'concussion' may be used interchangeably with 'mild TBI' when neuroimaging is normal or not clinically indicated.' CONCLUSIONS: New diagnostic criteria for mild TBI were developed through an evidence review and expert consensus process. Having unified diagnostic criteria for mild TBI can improve the quality and consistency of mild TBI research and clinical care.

Prevalence of depression and anxiety disorders following mild traumatic brain injury.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have identified an association between traumatic brain injuries and the development of psychiatric disorders in general. However, these studies were subject to limitations that demonstrate the need for a study of a large, clearly defined mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) population within an integrated healthcare system. OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence and relative risk of postinjury affective disorders over 4 years following mTBI. DESIGN: Cohort study of mTBI cases and matched controls, over a 4-year period. SETTING: An integrated healthcare delivery system in California. PATIENTS: A total of 9428 adult health plan members diagnosed with mTBI from 2000-2007 and enrolled in the year before injury, during which no TBI was ascertained. Control participants included 18,856 individuals selected based on the following criteria: Two unexposed health plan members per each mTBI-exposed patient were randomly selected and individually matched for age, gender, race/ethnicity, and medical comorbidities. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: A diagnosis of affective disorder (depressive, anxiety, and adjustment disorders) in the 4 years after mTBI or the reference date, determined according to the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification as well as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition, Text Revision. RESULTS: Affective disorders were most prominent during the first 12 months with 23% following mTBI and 14% in the control group. Four-year aggregate adjusted odds ratios for having an affective disorder following mTBI were 1.2 (95% CI: 1.1, 1.2; p < .001) and 1.5 (95% CI: 1.5, 1.6; p < .001) for patients with and without prior affective disorders, respectively. CONCLUSION: mTBI was associated with a significantly increased risk of having subsequent affective disorders. Screening for and addressing affective disorders at earlier stages following the injury is an important step to avoid persisting conditions that may pose a barrier to full recovery.

Does postacute care site matter? A longitudinal study assessing functional recovery after a stroke.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the impact of postacute care site on stroke outcomes. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Four northern California hospitals that are part of a single health maintenance organization. PARTICIPANTS: Patients with stroke (N=222) enrolled between February 2008 and July 2010. INTERVENTION: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Baseline and 6-month assessments were performed using the Activity Measure for Post Acute Care (AM-PAC), a test of self-reported function in 3 domains: Basic Mobility, Daily Activities, and Applied Cognition. RESULTS: Of the 222 patients analyzed, 36% went home with no treatment, 22% received home health/outpatient care, 30% included an inpatient rehabilitation facility (IRF) in their care trajectory, and 13% included a skilled nursing facility (but not IRF) in their care trajectory. At 6 months, after controlling for important variables such as age, functional status at acute care discharge, and total hours of rehabilitation, patients who went to an IRF had functional scores that were at least 8 points higher (twice the minimally detectable change for the AM-PAC) than those who went to a skilled nursing facility in all 3 domains and in 2 of 3 functional domains compared with those who received home health/outpatient care. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with stroke may make more functional gains if their postacute care includes an IRF. This finding may have important implications as postacute care delivery is reshaped through health care reform.

Designing and implementing a system for tracking functional status after stroke: a feasibility study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the feasibility of tracking stroke patients' functional outcomes in an integrated health system across a care continuum using the computer version of the Activity Measure of Post-Acute Care (AM-PAC). SETTING: A large integrated health care system in northern California. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 222 stroke patients (aged ≥18 years) who were hospitalized after an acute cerebrovascular accident. METHODS: An AM-PAC assessment was made at discharge from sites of care, including acute hospital, inpatient rehabilitation hospital, skilled nursing facility, home during home care, and outpatient settings. Assessments also were completed in the patient's home at 6 months. Data from the AM-PAC program were integrated with the health care system's databases. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: (1) AM-PAC administration time at the various sites of care; (2) assessment of a floor or a ceiling effect; and (3) administrative burden of tracking participants. RESULTS: AM-PAC assessment sessions averaged 7.9 minutes for data acquisition in 3 domains: Basic Mobility, Activities of Daily Living, and Applied Cognition. Participants answered, on average, 27 AM-PAC questions per session. A small ceiling effect was observed at 6 months, and there was a larger ceiling effect when the instrument was administered in an institution, ie, when the AM-PAC institutional item bank was used rather than the community item bank. It was feasible to track patients and to assess their function using the AM-PAC instrument from institutional to community settings. Implementation of the AM-PAC in clinical environments, and the success of the project, were influenced by instrumental, technological, operational, resource, and cultural factors. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates the feasibility of implementing a single functional outcome instrument in clinical and community settings to measure rehabilitation functional outcomes of stroke patients. Integrating the AM-PAC measurement system into clinical workflows and the electronic medical record could provide assistance to clinicians for medical decision making, functional prognostication, and discharge planning.