• M E de Koning, M E Scheenen, H J van der Horn, G Hageman, G Roks, T Yilmaz, J M Spikman, and J van der Naalt.
• a Department of Neurology, University of Groningen , University Medical Center Groningen , Groningen , Netherlands.
• Brain Inj. 2017 Jan 1; 31 (8): 1102-1108.

ObjectiveTo investigate outpatient follow-up after mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) by various medical specialists, for both hospitalized and non-hospitalized patients, and to study guideline adherence regarding hospital admission.MethodsPatients (n = 1151) with mTBI recruited from the emergency department received questionnaires 2 weeks (n = 879), 3 months (n = 780) and 6 months (n = 668) after injury comprising outpatient follow-up by various health care providers, and outcome defined by the Glasgow Outcome Scale Extended (GOS-E) after 6 months.ResultsHospitalized patients (60%) were older (46.6 ± 19.9 vs. 40.6 ± 18.5 years), more severely injured (GCS <15, 50% vs. 13%) with more Computed Tomography (CT) abnormalities on admission (21% vs. 2%) compared to non-hospitalized patients (p < 0.01) . Almost half of the patients visited a neurologist at the outpatient clinic within six months (60% of the hospitalized and 25% of the non-hospitalized patients (χ2 = 67.10, p < 0.01)), and approximately ten per cent consulted a psychiatrist/psychologist. Outcome was unfavourable (GOS-E <7) in 34% of hospitalized and 21% of non-hospitalized patients (χ2 = 11.89, p < 0.01).ConclusionTwo-thirds of all mTBI patients consult one or more specialists within six months after injury, with 30% having an unfavourable outcome. A quarter of non-hospitalized patients was seen at the outpatient neurology clinic, underling the importance of regular follow-up of mTBI patients irrespective of hospital admittance.

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