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The effect of injury diagnosis on illness perceptions and expected postconcussion syndrome and posttraumatic stress

Karen A Sullivan1, Shannon L Edmed, Chloe Kempe

  • 1Clinical Neuropsychology Research Group, School of Psychology and Counselling (Dr Sullivan and Mss Edmed and Kempe) and Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation (Dr Sullivan and Ms Edmed), Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia.

The Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation
|May 4, 2013
PubMed
Abstract

Insights

The diagnostic term used for a head injury, such as mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) or concussion, can influence perceptions of the injury

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Psychology
  • Trauma Research

Background:

  • Interchangeable use of diagnostic terms like concussion, minor head injury (MHI), and mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) can complicate patient understanding and outcomes.
  • The specific terminology employed following a standardized injury description may impact expected symptoms and illness perceptions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether varying diagnostic labels (mTBI, MHI, concussion) after a consistent injury description alter expected symptoms and illness perceptions.
  • To test the hypothesis that mTBI would be associated with worse outcomes compared to other diagnoses, and MHI perceived as worse than concussion.

Main Methods:

  • 108 volunteers were randomly assigned to read a vignette of a motor vehicle accident-related mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) followed by one of four diagnostic labels: mTBI, MHI, concussion, or no diagnosis.
  • Participants rated event undesirability, illness perception, and expected symptoms of postconcussion syndrome (PCS) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at 6 months post-injury.

Main Results:

  • Significant group differences were observed in perceived event undesirability, with mTBI rated as more undesirable than concussion or MHI.
  • Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology was higher in the mTBI and no diagnosis groups compared to the concussion group.
  • Negative illness perceptions were more pronounced in the mTBI and no diagnosis groups relative to the concussion group.

Conclusions:

  • While diagnostic terminology did not significantly alter anticipated postconcussion syndrome (PCS) symptoms at 6 months, it did influence other outcome measures.
  • The study suggests that the choice of diagnostic label, even when terms are used interchangeably, can impact factors contributing to poor mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) outcomes.

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