Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant public health concern, with 1.5 million new cases of brain injury occurring each year in the US, costing nearly $49 billion annually. Approximately, 5.3 million Americans are disabled from brain injury, often involving loss of career and/or longstanding mood and behavior changes. Depression affects up to 77% of those who sustain TBI. The study of post-TBI depression has largely been atheoretical. Guided by McEwen°¦s stress theory of allostasis, we will examine chronic stress, cognitive performance and physical symptoms, as indicators of allostatic load to better explain post-TBI depression. By identifying indicators for this community sample, nurses will be better able to identify those at risk for depressive symptoms and disrupted allostasis, both present following TBI and with a potential for affecting brain regions involved in neuron repair. Ninety community-dwelling persons who sustained mild-to-moderate TBI and were treated in an outpatient rehabilitation setting will be evaluated in this cross-sectional study. Using measures of chronic stress (Perceived Stress Scale and Impact of Events Scale), cognitive performance (IMPACT„· measures of attention span, working and visual recognition memory, impulse control, and speed), and physical symptom experience (pain, fatigue and brain injury symptoms), we will test relationships among these study variables with depressive symptoms as the outcome variable. It is hypothesized that there is a negative and significant relationship between all measures of the IMPACT„· battery and depressive symptom scores, a positive relationship between chronic stress and depressive symptom scores, and a positive relationship between physical health state and depressive symptom scores. Using SPSS, descriptive statistics and multiple regression techniques, we will determine the intensity and direction of relationships between indicators of allostatic load and depressive symptoms, using the NFI„· . This study will provide baseline data for a longitudinal study of persons recovering from TBI.
Session #1219 - Poster Session I
The 29th Annual MNRS Research Conference (April 1-4, 2005)