• Amy M Rosenbaum, Wayne A Gordon, Antigone Joannou, and Brady A Berman.
• a Traumatic Brain Injury Rehabilitation Department , Park Terrace Care Center , Rego Park , NY , USA.
• Brain Inj. 2018 Jan 1; 32 (7): 907-914.

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to examine the benefits of long-term inpatient rehabilitation for individuals with moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injuries (TBIs).MethodsRetrospective database review of 67 individuals with moderate-to-severe TBI admitted to a specialised inpatient TBI program. Outcome measures are as follows: (1) functional independence measure + functional assessment measure (FIM+FAM; admission, discharge, change scores); (2) discharge designation (community vs. long-term care (LTC)).ResultsThere was a mean improvement on FIM+FAM of 54.19 points (SD = 35.63) or 67% between admission and discharge (t(66) = -12.45, p < 0.001). Mean time post-injury upon completion of therapy was 409.59 days (SD = 343.93). Upon completion of rehabilitation, 50 (75%) participants were discharged to community and 17 to LTC. Among those returning to community, those with longer length of stays were more severely disabled on admission (t(35.9) = -4.86, p < 0.001). Controlling for admission functional status, individuals returning to community following >90 days of therapy required a mean of 378.94 days (SD = 298.86) to achieve comparable gains to those less impaired who received shorter periods of rehabilitation (F(1) = 0.530, p = 0.47).ConclusionContinued specialised inpatient services following acute inpatient rehabilitation for individuals with moderate-to-severe TBI can reduce the level of dependency and enhance the likelihood of return to community living.

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