gms | German Medical Science

Aim: To investigate perceived injustice after mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).

Method: 60 consecutively admitted mTBI patients were included in the study. Maximum time since injury at recruitment was 12 days. Patients completed self-report measures of perceived injustice (IEQ), post-concussive symptoms (RPQ), depressive symptoms (BDI-II), and post-traumatic stress symptoms (PCL-C) at 3 and 12 months after injury.

Results/findings: Mean age of patients was 41.3 (SD 12.6) years, and 56.5% were male. Mean total scores for each self-report measure at 3 months were as follows: IEQ 4.9 (SD 6.0), RPQ 6.2 (SD 8.4), BDI-II 4.7 (SD 5.7), and PCL-C 24.3 (SD 8.4). Post-concussive symptoms decreased during follow-up (t=2.44, p=0.019). No significant changes occurred in the other measures. At both 3 and 12 months, perceived injustice was associated with post-concussive symptoms (r=.761 and .500, p<0.01), depressive symptoms (r=.699 and .691, p<0.01), and post-traumatic stress (r=.745 and .627, p<0.01).

Discussion and conclusions: In this cohort of consecutive mTBI patients, perceived injustice was low at 3 months post-injury and it remained stable at 12 months follow-up. However, greater perceived injustice was associated with greater post-concussive and psychiatric symptoms, both at 3 and 12 months after injury. Thus, perceived injustice might be a relevant concept to consider in the clinical management of patients with persisting symptoms after mTBI.