This volume provides, for the first time, multidisciplinary perspectives on the problem of awareness of deficits following brain injury. Such deficits may involve perception, attention, memory, language, or motor functions, and they can seriously disrupt an individual's ability to function. However, some brain-damaged patients are entirely unaware of the existence or severity of their deficits, even when they are easily noticed by others. In addressing these topics, contributors cover the entire range of neuropsychological syndromes in which problems with awareness of deficit are observed: hemiplegia and hemianopia, amnesia, aphasia, traumatic head injury, dementia, and others. On the clinical side, leading researchers delineate the implications of awareness of deficits for rehabilitation and patient management, and the role of defense mechanisms such as denial. Theoretical discussions focus on the importance of awareness disturbances for better understanding such cognitive processes as attention, consciousness, and monitoring.
The Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) provides disability compensation to veterans with a service-connected injury, and to receive disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), a veteran must submit a claim or have a claim submitted on his or her behalf. Evaluation of the Disability Determination Process for Traumatic Brain Injury in Veterans reviews the process by which the VA assesses impairments resulting from traumatic brain injury for purposes of awarding disability compensation. This report also provides recommendations for legislative or administrative action for improving the adjudication of veterans' claims seeking entitlement to compensation for all impairments arising from a traumatic brain injury.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains a significant source of death and permanent disability, contributing to nearly one-third of all injury related deaths in the United States and exacting a profound personal and economic toll. Despite the increased resources that have recently been brought to bear to improve our understanding of TBI, the developme
E) Rehabilitation in mainland China -- f) Rehabilitation in Hong Kong -- g) Rehabilitation in Brazil -- h) Rehabilitation in Argentina -- i) Rehabilitation in South Africa -- j) Rehabilitation in Botswana -- SECTION SEVEN Evaluation and general conclusions -- 42 Outcome measures -- 43 Avoiding bias in evaluating rehabilitation -- 44 Challenges in the evaluation of neuropsychological rehabilitation effects -- 45 Summary and guidelines for neuropsychological rehabilitation -- Index
Packed with practical tools and examples, this state-of-the-art workbook provides a holistic framework for supporting clients with acquired brain injury. Clinicians are guided to set and meet collaborative treatment goals based on a shared understanding of the strengths and needs of clients and their family members. Effective strategies are described for building skills and teaching compensatory strategies in such areas as attention, memory, executive functions, mood, and communication. Particular attention is given to facilitating the challenging process of identity change following a life-altering injury. In a large-size format for easy photocopying, the volume features 94 reproducible client handouts. Purchasers get access to a Web page where they can download and print the reproducible materials.
In the past decade, few subjects at the intersection of medicine and sports have generated as much public interest as sports-related concussions - especially among youth. Despite growing awareness of sports-related concussions and campaigns to educate athletes, coaches, physicians, and parents of young athletes about concussion recognition and management, confusion and controversy persist in many areas. Currently, diagnosis is based primarily on the symptoms reported by the individual rather than on objective diagnostic markers, and there is little empirical evidence for the optimal degree and duration of physical rest needed to promote recovery or the best timing and approach for returning to full physical activity. Sports-Related Concussions in Youth: Improving the Science, Changing the Culture reviews the science of sports-related concussions in youth from elementary school through young adulthood, as well as in military personnel and their dependents. This report recommends actions that can be taken by a range of audiences - including research funding agencies, legislatures, state and school superintendents and athletic directors, military organizations, and equipment manufacturers, as well as youth who participate in sports and their parents - to improve what is known about concussions and to reduce their occurrence. Sports-Related Concussions in Youth finds that while some studies provide useful information, much remains unknown about the extent of concussions in youth; how to diagnose, manage, and prevent concussions; and the short- and long-term consequences of concussions as well as repetitive head impacts that do not result in concussion symptoms. The culture of sports negatively influences athletes' self-reporting of concussion symptoms and their adherence to return-to-play guidance. Athletes, their teammates, and, in some cases, coaches and parents may not fully appreciate the health threats posed by concussions. Similarly, military recruits are immersed in a culture that includes devotion to duty and service before self, and the critical nature of concussions may often go unheeded. According to Sports-Related Concussions in Youth, if the youth sports community can adopt the belief that concussions are serious injuries and emphasize care for players with concussions until they are fully recovered, then the culture in which these athletes perform and compete will become much safer. Improving understanding of the extent, causes, effects, and prevention of sports-related concussions is vitally important for the health and well-being of youth athletes. The findings and recommendations in this report set a direction for research to reach this goal.
Management of Adults with Traumatic Brain Injury is an up-to-the-minute, comprehensive, and useful text designed to support busy physicians, nurses, and mental health professionals working with persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and their families. Understanding and improving outcomes after TBI requires consideration of the effects of biomechanical forces on the brain and the interactions between the injury, the person experiencing it, and the psychosocial context in which TBI and its consequences occur. A multidisciplinary approach to the management of persons with TBI therefore is essential. Accordingly, this book presents and synthesizes the work of internationally recognized brain injury clinicians, scientists, and educators who were selected by a team of editors with backgrounds in psychiatry, neurology, psychology, and physiatry. This broad range of perspectives enhances understanding and provides nuanced yet practical information on the neuropsychiatric management of persons with TBI. Evidence-informed, concise, and clinically rich, Management of Adults with Traumatic Brain Injury will be of enormous value to health care providers grappling with the neurological and mental health consequences of this widespread public health problem.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) may affect 10 million people worldwide. It is considered the "signature wound" of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. These injuries result from a bump or blow to the head, or from external forces that cause the brain to move within the head, such as whiplash or exposure to blasts. TBI can cause an array of physical and mental health concerns and is a growing problem, particularly among soldiers and veterans because of repeated exposure to violent environments. One form of treatment for TBI is cognitive rehabilitation therapy (CRT), a patient-specific, goal-oriented approach to help patients increase their ability to process and interpret information. The Department of Defense asked the IOM to conduct a study to determine the effectiveness of CRT for treatment of TBI.
This book collects and synthesizes the latest thinking on the condition in its variety of cognitive and behavioral presentations, matched by a variety of clinical responses. Acknowledging the continuum of injury and the multi-stage nature of recovery, expert contributors review salient research data and offer clinical guidelines for the neuropsychologist working with TBI patients, detailing key areas of impairment, brief and comprehensive assessment methods and proven rehabilitation strategies. Taken together, these chapters provide a framework for best serving a wide range of TBI patients (including children, elders, and patients in multidisciplinary settings) and model treatment that is evidence-based and relevant. A sample of the topics featured in the Handbook: Bedside evaluations in TBI. Outcome assessment in TBI. Collaborating with family caregivers in the rehabilitation of persons with TBI. Behavioral assessment of acute neurobehavioral syndromes to inform treatment. Pediatric TBI: assessment, outcomes, intervention. Special issues with mild TBI in veterans and active duty service members. Expanding professional knowledge on a topic that continues to grow in importance, the Handbook on the Neuropsychology of Traumatic Brain Injury is a premier resource, not only for neuropsychologists but also for other professionals in cognitive care, and trainees entering the field.
