Relationship of Executive Functioning to Outcome after Brain Injury

Walter High, PhD, University of Kentucky, Physical Medicine &Rehabilitation, Cardinal Hill Endowed Chair

Individuals who sustain moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) typically have difficulty reintegrating into the community. However, the evidence relating executive dysfunction to functional outcome is limited. The purpose of the currently proposed longitudinal study is to examine the relationship between frontal lobe damage and post-injury community functioning. Moreover, the role of executive dysfunction as a mediator of the link between frontal lobe damage and community functioning will be explored. Eighty-six patients with a diagnosis of TBI will be recruited from Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital during their inpatient stay. A neuropsychological evaluation will be conducted during their hospital treatment in order to assess the presence and extent of executive dysfunction. This evaluation will include measures of executive functioning, language ability, attention, memory, visual spatial ability, motor functioning, and emotional state. A follow-up assessment administered one year post-injury will consist of the same measures and include measures of community integration and psychosocial functioning. The relationship between the predictors (demographic data, injury characteristics, scores on neuropsychological tests, etc.) and criterion measure (Mayo Portland Adaptability Inventory) will then be examined.