• Pam Pieper and Cynthia Garvan.
• University of Florida College of Nursing , Jacksonville, FL , USA and.
• Brain Inj. 2014 Jan 1; 28 (1): 105-13.

Objectives(1) To compare pre-injury health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) of children who have sustained mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) to their HRQoL at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months post-injury and (2) to compare the HRQoL of children with mTBI, children with mild non-brain injuries and children who were uninjured at the same time points. Child and parent responses were obtained for both objectives.Patients And MethodsThis prospective cohort study involved a self-selected convenience sample to evaluate child and parent perspectives of the HRQoL of 5-17 year old children with mTBI using the PedsQL Generic Core Scales and Cognitive Functioning Scale. Total sample size was 120 child/parent dyads, with 40 dyads each in the study and two control groups. Children who required hospitalization greater than 24 hours were excluded from the study.ResultsHRQoL of children with mTBI was not significantly different between pre- and post-injury at all-time points. However, children and parents in the mild non-brain injury group reported significantly lower physical HRQoL 1 month post-injury.ConclusionsChildren with mTBI had similar pre- and post-injury HRQoL. Thus, children who sustain mTBI and have significantly lower HRQoL within the first year post-injury merit further evaluation.

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