Neuropsychological rehabilitation for traumatic brain injury: do carers benefit?

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a new rehabilitation service, compared with existing services, for carers of people with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Subjects were 96 adult carers of people consecutively admitted to two local hospitals. They were assigned to one of three groups: Early new service (pre-discharge); Late new service (post-discharge); or a Control condition (existing services only). Individual randomization was not possible and randomization by hospital site was rejected because of demographic and clinical differences between sites. Group assignment was determined by a pre-specified timetable which alternated between hospitals. Two outcomes were compared at 6 months post-injury: carers' emotional distress and how well-informed they felt about TBI and available resources. Analyses adjusting for potential confounding factors confirmed a clinically plausible superior outcome for both intervention groups compared to the control group. However, these differences did not obtain statistical significance (p > or = 0.01). Several reasons for these findings are discussed, including the novelty of the new service and methodological issues such as statistical power. Longer term follow-up studies are required as psychological sequelae and, therefore, the need for intervention is known to increase with time and may not be most apparent during the first 6 months.