Neurobehavioural symptoms one year after a head injury

Abstract

BackgroundNeurobehavioural symptoms are common immediately after a minor head injury but have not been studied one year after the injury.AimsTo estimate the rate and pattern of neurobehavioural symptoms one year after a head injury of varying severity.MethodAdults who had been hospitalised after a head injury (n=196, 164 of whom had a face-to-face interview) and showed indirect evidence of brain assault were assessed for the presence of neurobehavioural symptoms with the help of a behaviour rating scale.ResultsAbout 40% had three or more symptoms. Individual symptoms varied among 3% (social disinhibition), 15% (lack of initiative) and 35% (irritability) of the cohort. Premorbid factors such as lower social class and lower educational achievement, head-injury-related factors such a low Glasgow coma score, and outcome-related factors such as the presence of a disability according to the Edinburgh Rehabilitation Status Scale and psychiatric caseness according to the Clinical Interview Schedule–Revised, significantly influenced the rate and the pattern of behavioural symptoms. The pattern of symptoms varied between age groups and according to the severity of the head injury.ConclusionsA significant proportion of patients with varying degrees of severity of head injury showed behavioural symptoms after one-year of head injury.