Risk factors predictive of psychiatric symptoms after traumatic brain injury

A history of psychiatric illness such as depression or anxiety before a traumatic brain injury (TBI), together with other risk factors, are strongly predictive of post-TBI psychiatric disorders, according to an article published in Journal of Neurotrauma.

In addition to a pre-injury psychiatric disorder, two other factors are early indicators of an increased risk for psychiatric illness one year after a TBI: psychiatric symptoms during the acute post-injury period, and a concurrent limb injury. Kate Rachel Gould, DPsych, Jennie Louise Ponsford, PhD, Lisa Johnston, PhD, and Michael Schönberger, PhD, Epworth Hospital and Monash University, Melbourne, Australia, and University of Freiburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, also describe a link between risk of psychiatric symptoms and unemployment, pain, and poor quality of life during the 12-month post-TBI period.

In the presence of a limb injury, patients who suffered a TBI had a 6.4 greater risk of psychiatric disorders at 1 year, and a 4-fold greater risk of depression in particular, compared to patients without a limb injury. The authors report their findings in the article, "Predictive and Associated Factors of Psychiatric Disorders after Traumatic Brain Injury: A Prospective Study."