Predictive ability of preinjury stressful life events and post-traumatic stress symptoms for outcomes following mild XXXX : analysis in a prospective emergency room sample.

@entity1 @entity131 @entity308 @entity147 @entity1005 @entity148
BACKGROUND: A subset of @entity1 with mild @entity131 (mTBI) experience long-term difficulties. Preinjury stress has been hypothesised to play a role in long-term maintenance of symptoms. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the predictive ability of preinjury stressful life events and post-traumatic stress symptoms to health-related quality of life and @entity147 after mTBI. METHODS: Within 2 weeks of injury, 186 @entity1 with mTBI who were admitted to an emergency centre completed an interview and questionnaires regarding preinjury functioning, including the Stressful Life Events Questionnaire and the @entity1005 Checklist. Outcomes were assessed at 3 months after injury and included the @entity308 and @entity148 subscales of the Brief Symptom Inventory, and the physical and mental component scores of the 36-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). The incidence and type of stressful life events were reported. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to determine the predictive utility of Stressful Life Events Questionnaire and @entity1005 Checklist after controlling for age, injury severity (complicated versus uncomplicated mild) and preinjury @entity308 . RESULTS: Several potentially life-altering stressful events were endorsed by at least 25% of @entity1 as having been experienced prior to injury. The incidence of stressful life events was a significant predictor of all four outcome variables. History of post-traumatic stress symptoms was predictive of scores on the SF-36 mental health component. CONCLUSIONS: A history of stressful events may predispose @entity1 with mTBI to have poor outcomes. History of stress should be assessed during the early stages after mTBI to help identify those who could benefit from therapies to assist with adjustment and maximise recovery.
