Neuropsychological test performances after mild traumatic brain injury: Systematic review of cognitive functioning across recovery phases and cognitive domains

Description

Worldwide, millions of people sustain a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) every year. mTBI can negatively affect neuropsychological test performances, but it is insufficiently clear to what extent such effects vary by phase of recovery and by cognitive domain. The current study concerns a systematic review of neuropsychological test performances after mTBI in a general adult population. With this systematic review, we aim to provide a comprehensive overview of recent literature regarding cognitive functioning after mTBI across the acute (0-3 months), subacute (3-6 months), early chronic (6-12 months) and late chronic (>12 months) phases of recovery. PubMed and PsycINFO were systematically searched using a comprehensive search strategy. Records were screened in a two-step process. Eligibility criteria concerned the definition of mTBI, generalizability of samples, objective assessment of cognitive functioning with neuropsychological tests or screenings, and comparison to a control group. Methodological quality of studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Data were synthesized by phase of recovery. Lowered performance by the mTBI groups, as compared to control groups, was found in the acute phase after injury, and to a lesser extent also in the subacute phase. Information processing speed, attention and memory were most often affected. In most studies, differences between mTBI and control groups were no longer found in the chronic phases. This systematic review adds to existing mTBI research by stratifying findings by phase of recovery and by cognitive domain. Although mild cognitive impairments may be present in the (sub)acute phase, there is limited evidence for long-lasting impairments on the group level. These findings can aid clinicians in evaluating patients’ cognitive functioning after mTBI: for patients with long-term complaints, other factors are likely at play and these should be considered in order to provide personalized treatment to mTBI patients in clinical practice.

Periode	3-jul.-2024
Evenementstitel	Global Neuropsychology Congress 2024
Evenementstype	Conference
Locatie	Porto, PortugalToon op kaart
Mate van erkenning	International