Patient Compliance in Brain Injury Rehabiltation in Relation to Awareness and Cognitive and Physical Improvement

• Published in: Neuropsychological rehabilitation 2006-10, Vol.16 (5), p.561-578
• Main Authors: Schonberger, Michael, Humle, Frank, Zeeman, Peter, Teasdale, Thomas W
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Awareness; Cognition; Compliance; Patients; Rehabilitation; Traumatic brain injury
• ISSN: 0960-2011
• DOI: 10.1080/09602010500263084

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the relationship between patients' compliance & awareness & outcome of brain injury rehabilitation. Subjects were 98 patients who underwent a holistic neuropsychological outpatient rehabilitation programme. Patients had suffered a traumatic brain injury (n = 26), a cerebrovascular accident (n = 58), or another neurological insult (n = 14). Measures: Two staff members, a neuropsychologist & a physiotherapist, retrospectively & separately rated patients' awareness & their compliance. Outcome was measured with the d2 test of concentration, measures of oxygen uptake, strength endurance, running speed, & patients' & relatives' ratings of patients' cognitive, physical, & overall problems on the European Brain Injury Questionnaire (EBIQ). The discrepancy between patients' & relatives' ratings on the EBIQ was incorporated as a second measure of patients' awareness. Results: The neuropsychologist's compliance ratings were significantly related to measures of insight, improvement of d2 performance accuracy & stability, improvement of oxygen uptake, & reduction of cognitive & overall problems as reported by the patients, while the physiotherapist's compliance ratings were related to measures of insight, improvement of d2 performance speed, improvement of oxygen uptake & strength endurance, & all three EBIQ patient scales. Discussion: The results suggest a differential relationship between situation-specific compliance & outcome. Tables, References. Adapted from the source document.