Article

Behavioural and psychological disorders after traumatic brain injury
(TBI) are very common. The purposes of this study were to estimate the frequency
of these problems in our sample, to evaluate the effectiveness of cognitive
behavioural therapy (CBT) and to assess the predictive value of important
clinical variables for the treatment outcome. METHOD: Forty patients aged 4-18
years were included in this study. Twenty-eight patients received CBT at our
Institute (clinical group), while 12 patients did not receive any treatment at
all (control group). The CBCL/4-18 and the VABS were administered to parents at
the beginning of the study and after 12 months. RESULTS: A high frequency of
psychological and behavioural problems was found in both groups of patients.
After CBT, the clinical group showed a significant advantage on several CBCL
scales and a greater increase in adaptive behaviour on the VABS Socialisation
domain. The Glasgow Coma Scale score, days of unconsciousness and age at injury
were not predictors of the severity of psychological problems at the follow-up
for the patients of the clinical group. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that CBT
is an effective intervention for young patients with psychological problems after
TBI.

Langue : ANGLAIS