• Jess F Kraus, Paul Hsu, Kathryn Schafer, and A A Afifi.
• Department of Epidemiology, UCLA , San Marcos, CA , USA .
• Brain Inj. 2014 Jan 1; 28 (10): 1248-56.

ObjectiveTo report on the occurrence of sustained outcomes including post-concussion symptoms, health services used and indicators of social disruption following a mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI).Research DesignA dual cohort comparing MTBI Emergency Department (ED) patients and a comparison group of non-head injured ED patients.Methods And ProceduresThe outcomes measures employed were the Rivermead Post-Concussion Symptoms Questionnaire (RPQ) and indicators of health services used and social disruption all recorded at the ED and at 3 and 6 months post-ED discharge. 'Sustained' meant a positive response to these measures at 3 and 6 months.Main Outcomes And ResultsReasonable follow-up success was achieved at 3 and 6 months and the cohorts were alike on all demographic descriptors. RPQ average score and symptom occurrence were far more frequent among MTBI patients than for the comparison cohort from 3 to 6 months. The use of health services and indicators of social disruption were also more frequent among MTBI post-discharge patients.ConclusionsThese findings argue that some with an MTBI suffer real complaints and they are sustained from 3 to at least 6 months. More effort should be given toward specificity of these symptoms from those reported by members of the comparison group.

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