Rehabilitation outcome following traumatic brain injury - the Singapore experience

The objectives of this study were to define (1) demographic and injury characteristics for acute traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients admitted to rehabilitation; (2) admission and discharge functional status; (3) discharge disposition and vocation status at follow-up. The charts of 80 consecutive TBI admissions (64 males, 16 females) were reviewed. Outcome measures included admission and discharge Modified Barthel Index (MBI) scores, length of rehabilitation stay, discharge disposition and return-to-work status at 1 year post-injury. Fifty-seven (71.3%) of patients were aged 40 years or less. Motor vehicle accidents accounted for 70.0% (56) of injuries. Sixty-one (76.3%) had severe head injuries. Diffuse cerebral oedema was present in 41.3% (33) and 52.5% (42) had intracranial haematoma. Admission and discharge MBI scores were 49.6 +/- 33.7 and 76.9 +/- 25.6 respectively. This difference was significant (P < 0.001). Memory and planning/ organization deficits were present in 68.6% and 70.5% of patients (51 tested). Multiple regression analysis showed that admission MBI score had significant influence on discharge functional outcome (Multiple R 0.66, R-2 0.40, P < 0.001). Seventy-two (90%) were discharge home and 25% (20) returned to work at 1 year post-injury. We conclude that this cohort of TBI patients showed significant improvement in functional status after rehabilitation, and admission functional status had the most impact on discharge functional outcome.