Objectives

The need for support following traumatic brain injury (TBI) is well documented. Yet the evidence is limited about the types of support required, how support needs change over time, and the effect of level of disability. This study addresses this limitation in the evidence.

Method

Longitudinal design with a state-wide inception cohort of 131 people with severe TBI. Support needs were assessed using the Care and Needs Scale at 3- and 5-years post-trauma.

Results

By 3 years post-trauma, the level of disability on the Disability Rating Scale stabilized (49.6% low disability, 39.7% moderate disability, 10.7% severe disability). By contrast, support needs were high at 3 years (95%) and 5 years (94%). The most common type of support need was psychosocial (95%), then instrumental activities of daily living (IADL; 63%). The most frequently occurring intensity level of support need was every few days (24%). A significant increase in the total number of support needs occurred between 3 and 5 years, particularly for IADL supports. At the individual participant level, intensity of support changed for 53% (increase in 35% and decrease in 18%). Disability subgroups showed different patterns of support needs.

Conclusions

Support needs after severe TBI are prevalent, varied, and change over time, which have implications for care-giving and service delivery.

中文翻译：

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对严重颅脑损伤后支持需求的纵向研究。

目标

创伤性脑损伤（TBI）后对支持的需求已得到充分证明。但是，关于所需支持的类型，支持需求随时间的变化以及残疾程度的影响，证据有限。这项研究解决了证据中的这一局限性。

方法

纵向设计，在全州范围内共有131名严重TBI患者。使用创伤后3年和5年的护理和需求量表评估支持需求。

结果

到创伤后三年，残疾等级量表上的残疾水平已稳定（低残疾为49.6％，中度残疾为39.7％，重度残疾为10.7％）。相比之下，支持需求很高，分别为3年（95％）和5年（94％）。最常见的支持需求类型是社会心理需求（95％），然后是日常生活的工具性活动（IADL; 63％）。支持需求最频繁出现的强度级别是每隔几天（24％）。3到5年之间，特别是对于IADL支持，支持需求的总数显着增加。在个人参与者级别，支持强度改变了53％（增加了35％，减少了18％）。残疾分组显示了不同的支持需求模式。

结论

严重的TBI后的支持需求普遍存在，变化并随时间而变化，这对护理和服务交付具有影响。