Citation

Harrison-Felix CL, Pretz CR, Hammond F, Cuthbert J, Bell J, Corrigan JD, Miller AC, Haarbauer-Krupa J. J. Neurotrauma 2014; 32(23): 1893-1901.

Affiliation

Craig Hospital, Research, Englewood, Colorado, United States ; charrison-felix@craighospital.org.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Mary Ann Liebert Publishers)

DOI

10.1089/neu.2014.3353

PMID

25057965

Abstract

This study characterized life expectancy after traumatic brain injury (TBI). The TBI Model Systems (TBIMS) National Database (NDB) was weighted to represent those 16 years of age and older completing inpatient rehabilitation for TBI in the United States (US) between 2001 and 2010. Analyses included Standardized Mortality Ratios (SMRs), Cox regression, and life expectancy. The US mortality rates by age, sex, race, and cause of death for 2005 and 2010 were used for comparison purposes.

RESULTS indicated a total of 1,325 deaths occurred in the weighted cohort of 6,913 individuals. Individuals with TBI were 2.23 times more likely to die than individuals of comparable age, sex, and race in the general population, with a reduced average life expectancy of nine years. Independent risk factors for death were: older age, male gender, less-than-high school education, previously married at injury, not employed at injury, more recent year of injury, fall-related TBI, not discharged home after rehabilitation, less functional independence, and greater disability. Individuals with TBI were at greatest risk of death due to seizures, accidental poisonings, sepsis, aspiration pneumonia, respiratory, mental/behavioral or nervous system conditions and other external causes of injury and poisoning compared to individuals in the general population of similar age, gender, and race. This study confirms prior life expectancy study findings, and provides evidence that the TBIMS NDB is representative of the larger population of adults receiving inpatient rehabilitation for TBI in the US. There is an increased risk of death for individuals with TBI requiring inpatient rehabilitation.

Language: en