Mild traumatic brain injury and fatigue: a prospective longitudinal study.

Abstract

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE:

To examine fatigue prevalence, severity, predictors and co-variates over 6 months post-mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI).

RESEARCH DESIGN:

Longitudinal prospective study including 263 adults with MTBI.

PROCEDURES:

Participants completed the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), Rivermead Post-concussion Symptoms Questionnaire (RPSQ), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Short Form 36 Health Survey-Version 2 (SF-36v2). Complete data were available for 159 participants. Key measures; prevalence--RPSQ Item 6: severity--FSS. The effect of time on fatigue prevalence and severity was examined using ANOVA. Multiple regression analysis identified statistically significant covariates.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND RESULTS:

Post-MTBI fatigue prevalence was 68%, 38% and 34% at 1 week, 3 and 6 months, respectively. There was a strong effect for time over the first 3 months and moderate-to-high correlations between fatigue prevalence and severity. Early fatigue strongly predicted later fatigue; depression, but not anxiety was a predictor. Fatigue was seen as laziness by family or friends in 30% of cases.

CONCLUSIONS:

Post-MTBI fatigue is a persistent post-concussion symptom, exacerbated by depression but not anxiety. It diminishes in the first 3 months and then becomes relatively stable, suggesting the optimum intervention placement is at 3 months or more post-MTBI.

• Authors: Joan Norrie, Marcus Heitger, Janet Leathem, Tim Anderson, Richard Jones, Ross Flett
• Journal: Brain injury (Brain Inj) Vol. 24 Issue 13-14 Pg. 1528-38 ( 2010) ISSN: 1362-301X [Electronic] England
• PMID: 21058899 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Topics

• Adolescent
• Adult
• Aged
• Analysis of Variance
• Brain Concussion (complications, psychology)
• Depressive Disorder (epidemiology, etiology, psychology)
• Family (psychology)
• Fatigue (epidemiology, etiology, psychology)
• Female
• Humans
• Longitudinal Studies
• Male
• Middle Aged
• New Zealand
• Prevalence
• Prospective Studies
• Severity of Illness Index
• Surveys and Questionnaires
• Young Adult