Analysis of Post-Concussion Syndrome Disability Re-appraisal

To understand the current status of appraisal of post-concussion syndrome disability and the reasons for the changes in re-appraisal opinions.

The cases that were judged as "post-concussion syndrome and ten-level disability" in the first appraisal and re-appraised for psychiatric impairment by the Academy of Forensic Science in 2019 were analyzed retrospectively.

There were 75 cases, including 58 cases with pre-hospital emergency medical records, among which 39 cases were clearly recorded to be without a history of coma; 74 cases had emergency medical records, among which 44 cases were recorded of having a history of coma; 43 cases had follow-up medical records, among which 24 cases had a history of psychiatric follow-up. The most complained symptoms of the appraisee in appraisal and examination include headache, dizziness, poor sleep at night, irritability, memory loss, fatigue and inattention. The main reasons for the re-appraisal application include doubts about the history of coma, doubts about the credibility of mental symptoms, post-concussion syndrome didn't meet the disability criteria, and objections to the original appraisal procedure or the original appraisal agency. The appraisal opinions of a total of 47 cases were changed. Seven of them did not meet the disability criteria, and the main reason was that there was no clear history of coma and no head injury was admitted; the coma history of the 40 other cases had to be confirmed by the court before they can be clearly identified as disabilities. The reason was that the records about the history of coma were inconsistent or there were alterations and additional information.

In the past, the conditions for appraisal of post-concussion syndrome disability were too lax and must be further standardized and strictly controlled.