Table 1.
Characteristics of the Children and Adolescents Who Completed Follow-up and by Presence of PCS After mTBIa
| Characteristic | Completed Follow-up (n = 406) |
PCS (n = 119) |
No PCS (n = 287) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demographic Variables | |||
| Age | |||
| Adolescents (11–18 y) | 79.6 | 87.4 | 76.3 |
| Mean (SD), y | 13.2 (3.5) | 14.1 (3.2) | 12.8 (3.6) |
| Median (range), y | 14.1 (5.0–18.0) | 14.9 (5.5–18.0) | 13.6 (5.9–18.0) |
| Male sex | 61.2 | 52.9 | 64.7 |
| Race/ethnicity | |||
| White | 84.5 | 82.4 | 85.4 |
| Non-Hispanic | 94.1 | 93.8 | 94.2 |
| Public insurance/self-pay | 27.1 | 32.8 | 24.7 |
| Prior TBI | 29.7 | 29.4 | 29.8 |
| Severe MOI | 39.2 | 45.4 | 36.6 |
| Arrival by EMS | 53.2 | 56.9 | 51.6 |
| Other diagnoses | 68.7 | 73.1 | 66.9 |
| ED Variables | |||
| GCS score <15 | 4.9 | 6.7 | 4.2 |
| LOC | 53.0 | 58.8 | 50.5 |
| Headache | 70.6 | 83.2 | 65.4 |
| Amnesia | 49.4 | 49.6 | 49.3 |
| Nausea/vomiting | 37.3 | 43.7 | 34.6 |
| Other MS changes | 91.9 | 91.6 | 92.0 |
| CT in ED | 54.2 | 63.0 | 50.5 |
| Abnormal CT finding | 3.5 | 3.4 | 3.5 |
| Analgesics administered in ED | 55.4 | 65.6 | 51.2 |
| Discharge instructions for mTBI | 63.1 | 57.9 | 65.2 |
| Hospital admission | 10.4 | 17.8 | 7.4 |
| 3-mo Follow-up Variables | |||
| Self-interview | 35.7 | 44.5 | 32.1 |
| Analgesics administered at home | 56.9 | 70.6 | 51.2 |
| Days of school missed >2 | 28.9 | 44.3 | 22.5 |
| Mean (SD) [range] | 3.8 (9.0) [0–75] | 7.4 (13.9) [0–75] | 2.2 (5.2) [0–50] |
| In process of/have intent to sue | 9.6 | 19.3 | 5.6 |
Abbreviations: CT, computed tomography; ED, emergency department; EMS, emergency medical services; GCS, Glasgow Coma Scale; LOC, loss of consciousness; MOI, mechanism of injury; MS, mental status; mTBI, mild traumatic brain injury; PCS, postconcussion syndrome.
a
Unless otherwise indicated, data are expressed as percentage of patients.