Traumatic Brain Injury Positive Strategies for Families: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of an Online Parent-Training Program.

The study was a pilot trial that stopped early due to the pandemic, resulting in a smaller sample than planned and lower statistical power. The sample was heterogeneous, including children with both traumatic and non-traumatic brain injuries across a wide age range, which may have made it harder to detect specific effects. The control group received an active online resource (BrainLine.org) that also provided injury-related information, which may have reduced the difference between groups. Baseline functioning of the children was largely within the average range, limiting the potential for observable improvement. Only one caregiver per household participated, so the study could not assess the impact on the broader family unit. The primary outcomes were not clearly defined in the text, and the significant finding for Strategy Knowledge came from exploratory univariable tests after the overall multivariate test was non-significant.

The authors received compensation from the NIH grant that funded the work. The TIPS program may be licensed for commercialization in the future.

Do not conclude that TIPS improves patient or family outcomes. The significant finding was limited to caregiver knowledge, and the overall test for all outcomes was not significant. The study did not show that caregivers applied the strategies better or that their families experienced less impact from the injury.