Description of School Outcomes Among Children With Traumatic Brain Injuries, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Concussion Surveillance System Pilot.
Dana Waltzman, Alexis B Peterson, Daniel Chang and 1 others
PMID 39721803WHAT IT FOUND
Parents reported 9.9% of children aged 5-17 had a TBI in the past year.
Sleep changes, fatigue, concentration trouble, light/noise sensitivity, and learning or memory problems were linked to missing school, extra help, or worse school functioning.
Key findings
01An estimated 9.9% of children aged 5-17 years sustained a TBI in the preceding 12 months, with 11.2% of males and 8.5% of females.
02Among children whose most recent TBI occurred during the school year or when school was in session, 29.4% missed school, and 1 day was the only absence length reported. Across most recent TBIs, 9.9% received extra help, support, or services at school and 8.0% had declining grades.
03After adjustment, sleep changes or more tiredness, trouble concentrating, nausea or vomiting, and LOC were associated with missing school; sensitivity to light or noise and difficulty learning or remembering were associated with extra school help.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
Recall bias, telescoping, and social desirability were possible because parents reported about their children. Parents may have been unaware of some injuries or symptoms, so TBI estimates may be underreported; youth self-report studies showed a 2- to 3-fold increase in TBI prevalence compared with parent-proxy reporting. The TBI case definition was developed using adult survey respondents, and its applicability to children was unknown. The weighted estimates were not intended to produce nationally representative estimates. The study did not assess the type of academic support provided after injury. The survey did not evaluate whether any school accommodation, medical care, or therapy improved outcomes.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that any specific school accommodation improved outcomes. The survey did not evaluate interventions, only parent-reported associations, and the 9.9% TBI rate was not intended to be a national estimate.