Influencing Factors and Brief Intervention Programs for Post-concussion Symptoms---A Prospective Study

Background：Post concussion symptoms (PCS) are not uncommon after mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). Although most PCS has gradually recovered at 3 months post-injury, few patients still reported persistent PCS (PPCS), which significantly interfered with their social and occupational capacities, even one year after injuries. Even though some researchers have shown the specific influencing factors on PCS manifestations after mTBI, methodological drawbacks may still weaken the representativeness of those studies. On the other hand, no effective programs were developed to reduce the PCS in Eastern societies. This study thus has three specific aims: (1) to examine the potential influencing factors, such as depression and anxiety, on PCS manifestations; (2) to examine the effectiveness of a developed brief intervention program for PCS; (3) to establish a mobilized intervention program for PCS, and to evaluate the effectiveness of the mobilized program for the PCS. Methods：This will be a 3-phase study during a period of 3 years. Two hundred participants, who include 50 patients with mTBI received paper version of intervention program, 50 patients received mobilized program, 50 patients received regular therapy for the PCS, and another 50 healthy participants, will be recruited. The PCS will be evaluated by the modified Checklist for Post-Concussion Symptoms (mCPCS), and all participants will be also evaluated for their neurobehavioral functions, which include intelligence, memory, executive functions, psychomotor speed, and emotional disturbances. During the first phase, the influencing factors of PCS will be revealed and the effectiveness of the paper version of the intervention program will be examined. During the second, the mobilized intervention program will be established. Meanwhile, the influencing factors of PPCS will be revealed and the effectiveness of the paper and mobilized versions of intervention program was compared. During the last phase, the persistent effectiveness of both programs was further evaluated. Expected Results：Patients with mTBI reported significant PCS, and 10% of the patients suffered from the PPCS. Anxiety will be the main influencing factor on the PCS manifestations rather than depression. Our results further revealed that both the paper and mobilized versions of intervention program will be effective to reduce the PCS. In addition, the reduction of PCS after the mobilized intervention program will be significantly greater than other treatment methods.

Project ID:PF10406-3166
External Project ID:MOST104-2410-H182-005-MY2