Abstract
Primary objective: To investigate the emotional well-being of relatives of patients with a severe brain injury in the acute setting, as well as risk factors associated with high anxiety and depression scores and impaired quality-of-life. Research design: Clinical convenience sample. Methods and procedures: Participants included 45 relatives of patients with severe brain injury recruited at a NICU. All relatives completed selected scales from the SCL-90-R and SF-36 ~ 14 days after injury. Data concerning the condition of the patient were also collected. Main outcome and results: Of the relatives, 51% and 69% reported anxiety and depression, respectively, as well as significantly impaired quality-of-life compared to normal reference populations. Regression analysis revealed that up to 20% of the variance in depression and anxiety scores could be explained by the CRASH 2 Mortality prediction. Conclusions: The majority of the relatives had severely impaired quality-of-life and symptoms of anxiety and depression during the patient's NICU stay. Future research is required to explore stressors and evaluate effects of psychological intervention in the acute setting.
| Original language | English |
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| Journal | Brain Injury |
| Volume | 26 |
| Issue number | 10 |
| Pages (from-to) | 1192-1200 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| ISSN | 0269-9052 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Sept 2012 |