Post-Concussion Symptoms in Complicated vs. Uncomplicated Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Patients at Three and Six Months Post-Injury: Results from the CENTER-TBI Study

Date
2019
Authors
Voormolen, DC
Haagsma, JA
Polinder, S
Maas, AIR
Steyerberg, EW
Vuleković, P
Sewalt, CA
Gravesteijn, BY
Covic, A
Andelic, N
Supervisor
Item type
Journal Article
Degree name
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
MDPI AG
Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the occurrence of post-concussion symptoms and post-concussion syndrome (PCS) in a large cohort of patients after complicated and uncomplicated mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) at three and six months post-injury. Patients were included through the prospective cohort study: Collaborative European NeuroTrauma Effectiveness Research (CENTER-TBI). Patients enrolled with mTBI (Glasgow Coma Scale 13–15) were further differentiated into complicated and uncomplicated mTBI based on the presence or absence of computed tomography abnormalities, respectively. The Rivermead Post-Concussion Symptoms Questionnaire (RPQ) assessed post-concussion symptoms and PCS according to the mapped ICD-10 classification method. The occurrence of post-concussion symptoms and syndrome at both time points was calculated. Chi square tests were used to test for differences between and within groups. Logistic regression was performed to analyse the association between complicated versus uncomplicated mTBI and the prevalence of PCS. Patients after complicated mTBI reported slightly more post-concussion symptoms compared to those after uncomplicated mTBI. A higher percentage of patients after complicated mTBI were classified as having PCS at three (complicated: 46% vs. uncomplicated: 35%) and six months (complicated: 43% vs. uncomplicated 34%). After adjusting for baseline covariates, the effect of complicated versus uncomplicated mTBI at three months appeared minimal: odds ratio 1.25 (95% confidence interval: 0.95–1.66). Although patients after complicated mTBI report slightly more post-concussion symptoms and show higher PCS rates compared to those after uncomplicated mTBI at three and six months, complicated mTBI was only found a weak indicator for these problems.

Description
Keywords
Complicated mild traumatic brain injury; Post-concussion symptoms; Post-concussion syndrome; Traumatic brain injury
Source
Journal of Clinical Medicine, 8(11), 1921. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm8111921
Rights statement
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.