The Journal of head trauma rehabilitation
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J Head Trauma Rehabil · Jul 2010
ReviewThe role of advanced MR imaging findings as biomarkers of traumatic brain injury.
Treatment of traumatic brain injury (TBI) requires proper classification of the pathophysiology. Clinical classifiers and conventional neuroimaging are limited in TBI detection, outcome prediction, and treatment guidance. Advanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques such as susceptibility weighted imaging, diffusion tensor imaging, and magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging are sensitive to microhemorrhages, white matter injury, and abnormal metabolic activities, respectively, in brain injury. ⋯ These MRI techniques have already demonstrated their potential to improve TBI detection and outcome prediction. As such, they have demonstrated the capacity of serving as a set of biomarkers to reveal the heterogeneous and complex nature of brain injury in a regional and temporal manner. Further longitudinal studies using advanced MRI in a synergistic approach are expected to provide insight in understanding TBI and imaging implications for treatment.
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J Head Trauma Rehabil · Jul 2010
ReviewFunctional magnetic resonance imaging of mild traumatic brain injury.
Mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) is a serious health problem that has been difficult to study because of the relative insensitivity of established anatomical imaging techniques for detecting the associated neural damage and dysfunction. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) offers potential for understanding the neural and functional basis of MTBI and the relationship to behavioral and somatic symptoms. This article reviews the recent fMRI literature relevant to the study of MTBI. The pathophysiology of MTBI and the neural basis of the blood oxygen level-dependent fMRI response are also considered with particular focus on important issues for using fMRI to investigate MTBI.
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To examine change in residence following traumatic brain injury (TBI) as a function of preinjury residential status, demographic factors, and injury-related characteristics. ⋯ Among persons who received acute rehabilitation for TBI, 35.4% were discharged from rehabilitation to a setting different from the one in which they resided before injury. The degree of change varied on the basis of preinjury residence. Overall, the results indicate that while many patients are discharged to a different residential setting than prior to their injury, some patients recover to the point where they are able to return to their premorbid residential setting. The most substantial change was for those living alone at the time of injury, and within the first year of injury.
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J Head Trauma Rehabil · Jan 2010
Comparative StudyInterview versus questionnaire symptom reporting in people with the postconcussion syndrome.
To compare spontaneous, interview-based, postconcussion symptom reporting to endorsement of symptoms on a standardized questionnaire. ⋯ Clinicians need to be cautious when interpreting questionnaires and be aware of the possibility of nonspecific symptom endorsement, symptom overendorsement, symptom expectations influencing symptom endorsement, and the nocebo effect.
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J Head Trauma Rehabil · Jan 2010
Prevalence and psychological correlates of traumatic brain injury in operation iraqi freedom.
To describe the prevalence and psychological correlates of traumatic brain injury (TBI) among injured male combatants in the Iraq conflict. ⋯ These findings could reflect a problem with differential diagnosis or, conversely, a low rate of self-presentation for symptoms. Further research is needed to elucidate the psychological consequences, clinical implications, and overall impact of TBI among military combat veterans.