Functioning and disability in traumatic brain injury.

Purpose: To describe functioning and disability in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) according to the model endorsed by the International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health (ICF).

Methods: Adult patients with acquired TBI were consecutively enrolled. The Functional Independence Measure (FIM), the WHO Disability Assessment Schedule II (WHO-DAS II) and the ICF checklist were administered in individual sessions. Descriptive analyses were performed to report on FIM and WHO-DAS II scores. ICF categories reported as a problem by more than 20% of patients were described in detail.

Results: One hundred patients (66 males, mean age 36.1) were enrolled. Mean WHO-DAS II score was 16.8, mean FIM was 116.5 and 87 ICF categories were selected: 27 Body Functions (mainly mental and movement-related) and Structures, 43 Activities and Participation (mainly connected with mobility) and 17 Environmental Factors. Negligible difference between capacity and performance qualifiers was observed.

Conclusions: The ICF can be successfully implemented in clinical and rehabilitation of patients with TBI, because it enables to describe the variety of problems they encounter: ICF-derived data provide a holistic view of disability and enable the impact of service interventions on functioning and participation, and enable clinicians to tailor intervention according to patient's actual needs.