Citation

Catroppa C, Anderson VA, Morse SA, Haritou F, Rosenfeld JV. J. Pediatr. Psychol. 2008; 33(7): 707-718.

Affiliation

Department of Psychology, Royal Children's Hospital, Flemington Road, Parkville, Victoria 3052, Australia. catroppc@tpg.com.au

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, Oxford University Press)

DOI

10.1093/jpepsy/jsn006

PMID

18296728

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: The aim was to examine functional outcomes following traumatic brain injury (TBI) during early childhood, to investigate impairments up to 5 years postinjury and identify predictors of outcome. METHODS: The study compared three groups of children (mild = 11, moderate = 22, severe = 15), aged 2.0-6.11 years at injury, to a healthy control group (n = 17). Using a prospective, longitudinal design, adaptive abilities, behavior, and family functioning were investigated acutely, 6, 30 months and 5 years postinjury, with educational progress investigated at 30 months and 5 years postinjury. RESULTS: A strong association was suggested between injury severity and outcomes across all domains. Further, 5-year outcomes in adaptive and behavioral domains were best predicted by preinjury levels of child function, and educational performance by injury severity. CONCLUSION: Children who sustain a severe TBI in early childhood are at greatest risk of long-term impairment in day-to-day skills in the long-term postinjury.

Language: en