These findings suggest potential treatments including cognitive behavior therapy supporting lifestyle modifications, pharmacologic treatments with modafinil and melatonin, and light therapy to enhance alertness, vigilance, and mood. Controlled trials of these interventions are needed.
The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between subjective fatigue and selective attention deficits following traumatic brain injury (TBI). Forty-six participants with mild-severe TBI and 46 healthy controls completed fatigue scales (Visual Analogue Scale -Fatigue, Fatigue Severity Scale [FSS] and Causes of Fatigue Questionnaire [COF]), and attentional measures including subtests from the Test of Everyday Attention, and the Complex Selective Attention Task (C-SAT). TBI participants reported greater fatigue on the FSS and COF, performed more slowly on attentional measures, and made more errors on the C-SAT. After controlling for anxiety and depression, fatigue was significantly correlated with performance only on the C-SAT. Findings suggest a relationship between subjective fatigue and impairment on tasks requiring higher order attentional processes.
Numerous outcome studies have found fatigue to be a common problem following traumatic brain injury (TBI). This study examined the magnitude, causes and impact of fatigue following TBI using three subjective fatigue scales, and investigated its relationship with demographic and injury-related factors, and mood. Forty-nine controls and 49 TBI participants (36.2% with GCS score of 13–15, 29.8% with GCS score of 9–12, and 34% with GCS score of 3–8) were seen at a mean of approximately 8 months post injury. All participants completed three subjective fatigue measures, including the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), Visual Analogue Scale–Fatigue (VAS–F) and Causes of Fatigue Questionnaire (COF). TBI participants reported a significantly greater impact of fatigue on their lifestyle on the FSS relative to controls, and reported activities requiring physical and mental effort as more frequent causes of fatigue on the COF. There were, however, no significant group differences on subscales of the VAS–F. Greater time since injury and higher education levels were associated with higher fatigue levels, independent of the effects of mood. Injury severity and age were not found to be significant predictors of subjective fatigue severity in TBI participants. (JINS, 2005,11, 416–425.)
Research findings have suggested that individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI) show greater psychophysiological and subjective costs associated with performing vigilance tasks, but have not examined relationships with fatigue. The present study aimed to investigate vigilance and its relationship with subjective and objective fatigue measures. Forty-six TBI participants and 46 controls completed a 45-minute vigilance task. They also completed a subjective fatigue scale (the VAS-F) and a selective attention task before and after the vigilance task, and had their blood pressure (BP) monitored. TBI participants performed at a lower level on the vigilance task, but performed at a similar level across the duration of the task. Higher subjective fatigue ratings on the VAS-F were associated with more misses on the vigilance task for TBI participants. TBI participants showed greater increases in diastolic BP, and these were associated with greater increases in subjective fatigue ratings on the VAS-F. A subgroup of TBI participants showed a decline in performance on the vigilance task and also showed disproportionate increases in subjective fatigue. Findings provide support for the coping hypothesis, suggesting that TBI individuals expend greater psychophysiological costs in order to maintain stable performance over time, and that these costs are also associated with subjective increases in fatigue.
Objectives: To explore living situation, support and participation outcomes of people with severe acquired brain injury (ABI) residing in either home-like or disabilityspecific accommodation settings, who were provided with 3 years of occupational therapy intervention based on the Community Approach to Participation (CAP). To examine transitions for a subgroup whose accommodation and support model changed during this 3-year period and identify factors critical to this change. Method: Forty-three participants who had sustained severe to extremely severe ABI, and were an average of 6.73 years post-injury, were provided with CAP intervention over a 3-year period. Living situation and support model, participation levels and accommodation transition data were collected at four time points. Results: Participants were living in a range of home-like and disability-specific accommodation settings at baseline. The disability-specific accommodation group had mainly noncompensable injuries and required a significantly higher level of daily support at all four time points. They also received higher total hours of support, which averaged 170.83 hours per week at baseline and did not change significantly over the 3 years. In contrast, 86% of the participants residing in homelike settings had compensable injuries and received an average of 91.46 hours of support per week at baseline. This reduced to 70.97 hours per week over the 3-year intervention period, a change that was statistically significant. Conclusion: It is possible to achieve accommodation transitions to more independent, home-like situations many years post-injury and regardless of injury severity. Home-like settings provide scope to adjust support along a continuum to reflect gains in independence, community integration and role participation that the fixed models and hours of support in disability-specific accommodation do not. Over time, these gains can flow into a significant reduction in hours of support.
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