Using Rates of Low Scores to Assess Agreement between Brief Computerized Neuropsychological Assessment Batteries: A Clinically-based Approach for Psychometric Comparisons.

Objective: To assess agreement between four brief computerized neurocognitive assessment tools (CNTs), ANAM, CogState, CNS Vital Signs, and ImPACT, by comparing rates of low scores.

Methods: Four hundred and six US Army service members (SMs) with and without acute mild traumatic brain injury completed two randomly assigned CNTs with order of administration also randomly assigned. We performed a base rate analysis for each CNT to determine the proportions of SMs in the control and mTBI groups who had various numbers of scores that were 1.

Trajectory of Postconcussive Symptoms 12 Months After Deployment in Soldiers With and Without Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: Warrior Strong Study.

We analyzed data from a cohort of recently deployed soldiers from 2 US Army bases, Fort Carson and Fort Bragg (2009 to 2015). Soldiers with and without a recent history of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) on deployment were evaluated within days of return and at 3, 6, and 12 months. Those with mTBI were more likely than those without to endorse ≥1 postconcussive symptom as "severe" and/or "very severe" (47% vs.

A Comparison of Four Computerized Neurocognitive Assessment Tools to a Traditional Neuropsychological Test Battery in Service Members with and without Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.

Objective: Computerized neurocognitive assessment tools (NCATS) are often used as a screening tool to identify cognitive deficits after mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). However, differing methodology across studies renders it difficult to identify a consensus regarding the validity of NCATs. Thus, studies where multiple NCATs are administered in the same sample using the same methodology are warranted.

Long-Term Outcomes and Needs of Military Service Members After Noncombat-Related Traumatic Brain Injury.

Objectives: Assess the prevalence of self-identified unmet service needs in a military sample an average of 5 years following noncombat traumatic brain injury (TBI). Examine relationships between unmet needs and background, injury-related and outcome variables.

Methods: The study sample consisted of 89 veterans and service members who sustained non-combat TBI between 1999 and 2003, selected from enrollees in the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center TBI registry.

Soldiers returning from deployment: A qualitative study regarding exposure, coping, and reintegration.

Purpose/objective: The purpose of this study was to qualitatively explore exposure to deployment-related physical and/or emotional trauma and associated symptoms among Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) soldiers. Interviews also focused on in-theater- and reintegration-related experiences.

Research Method/design: OEF/OIF soldiers (N = 103) participated in semistructured interviews, and a qualitative descriptive methodology was used to analyze the data.

Long-term functional outcomes of traumatic brain injury.

We review the literature on two long-term functional outcomes of traumatic brain injury (TBI) important to patients, family members, and rehabilitation treatment teams: work for pay and driving outcomes. Estimates on the percentages working after TBI have ranged widely, and few consistent prognostic indicators of long-term outcomes have been identified. The few large randomized controlled treatment trials of these long-term productive outcomes have been negative, but have identified promising subgroup results that bear further investigation.

Using base rates of low scores to interpret the ANAM4 TBI-MIL battery following mild traumatic brain injury.

Base rates of low ANAM4 TBI-MIL scores were calculated in a convenience sample of 733 healthy male active duty soldiers using available military reference values for the following cutoffs: ≤2nd percentile (2 SDs), ≤5th percentile, <10th percentile, and <16th percentile (1 SD). Rates of low scores were also calculated in 56 active duty male soldiers who sustained an mTBI an average of 23 days (SD = 36.1) prior.

Self-awareness and neurobehavioral outcomes, 5 years or more after moderate to severe brain injury.

Objective: To examine self-awareness 5 years or more after traumatic brain injury (TBI) and its relation to outcomes.

Participants: Sixty-two adults with moderate to severe TBI and significant other (SO) informants (family or close friend).

Setting: Regional veterans medical center.

Self-reported mild TBI and postconcussive symptoms in a peacetime active duty military population: effect of multiple TBI history versus single mild TBI.

Objective: To investigate the potential cumulative impact of mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) on postconcussive symptoms.

Participants: A total of 224 active duty soldiers reporting MTBI within 1 year of testing. For 101, this MTBI was their only reported traumatic brain injury (TBI); 123 had sustained at least 1 additional MTBI during their lifetime.

MTHFR C677T genotype as a risk factor for epilepsy including post-traumatic epilepsy in a representative military cohort.

The well-studied C677T variant in the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) enzyme is a biologically plausible genetic risk factor for seizures or epilepsy. First, plasma/serum levels of homocysteine, a pro-convulsant, are moderately elevated in individuals with the homozygote TT genotype. Furthermore, the TT genotype has been previously linked with migraine with aura-a comorbid condition-and with alcohol withdrawal seizures.

Traumatic brain injury in the United States: an epidemiologic overview.

A basic description of severity and frequency is needed for planning healthcare delivery for any disease process. In the case of traumatic brain injury, severity is typically categorized into mild, moderate, and severe with information from a combination of clinical observation and self-report methodologies. Recent US civilian epidemiological findings measuring the frequency of mortality and morbidity of traumatic brain injury are presented, including demographic and etiological breakdowns of the data.

Performance on the Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics in a nonclinical sample of soldiers screened for mild TBI after returning from Iraq and Afghanistan: a descriptive analysis.

Purpose: To characterize cognitive test performance in a sample of US Army soldiers who had served in Iraq and Afghanistan and were tested after returning to their home base. To determine whether if a self-reported history of deployment-related traumatic brain injury (TBI), lifetime history of TBI, and the current postconcussive symptom status affected cognitive test performance.

Methods: A convenience sample of 956 soldiers was administered the Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics (ANAM) test battery as well as questionnaires asking about deployment-related TBI, lifetime TBI history, and current TBI-related symptoms.

Traumatic brain injury risk while parachuting: comparison of the personnel armor system for ground troops helmet and the advanced combat helmet.

Military paratroopers are inherently at risk for a variety of injuries when they jump, including traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). U.S.

Screening for traumatic brain injury in troops returning from deployment in Afghanistan and Iraq: initial investigation of the usefulness of a short screening tool for traumatic brain injury.

Objective: Preliminary assessment of a new instrument, the Brief Traumatic Brain Injury Screen (BTBIS).

Design: Cross-sectional study of 596 soldiers returning from Iraq and/or Afghanistan, comparing the consistency of their reports of traumatic brain injury (TBI) across instruments with similar TBI questions, and in a brief follow-up interview.

Setting: Military base.

Hospital admissions associated with traumatic brain injury in the US Army during peacetime: 1990s trends.

Introduction: This paper examines 10-year trends in traumatic brain injury (TBI)-related hospitalization rates for active duty US Army personnel in the 1990s. It does this within the context of various factors, including enhanced injury prevention policies and changed hospital admission practices, that may have affected TBI hospitalization rates. It also compares TBI hospitalization rates in the Army to those from an age-comparable segment of the US civilian population over this time period.

Predictive value of an early Glasgow Outcome Scale score: 15-month score changes.

Object: Does an early Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) assessment provide a reliable indicator of later outcome in a patient with traumatic brain injury (TBI)? The authors examined the utility of the GOS during early treatment as a predictor of outcome score 15 months postinjury by analyzing outcome score change in a group of patients with closed head injuries.

Methods: Glasgow Outcome Scale scores assessed within 3 months of injury (baseline) were compared with scores obtained at 15 months postinjury in 121 patients, primarily young military personnel. Score changes between baseline and 8 months postinjury were also studied in a subgroup of 72 patients.

Traumatic brain injury in U.S. Army paratroopers: prevalence and character.

Background: This study presents self-reported traumatic brain injury (TBI) prevalence rates for 2,337 active duty U.S. Army soldiers who underwent baseline testing as part of a larger study of military TBI.