Late Breaking Research Poster
Consequences of COVID-19: A Survey of Individuals with Chronic Traumatic Brain Injury

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2020.10.029Get rights and content

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Research Objectives

To investigate the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI), with particular attention to unique effects for individuals with chronic disability.

Design

Individuals with and without a history of TBI completed a web-based survey.

Setting

Participants completed the survey from their own homes between May and June 2020, during social distancing related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Participants

Participants to date are 40 individuals in the chronic phase of moderate-severe TBI (>6 months post-injury) and 44 non-injured healthy comparison peers. Data collection will be ongoing until June 21st (one month after initial survey distribution).

Interventions

Participants answered questions about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected their work, education, medical care, social communication, sources of information and decision-making, and mental and physical well-being. Individuals with TBI also answered questions about how TBI has affected their experiences of the pandemic.

Main Outcome Measures

Participants provided a mix of multiple-choice and free-text responses.

Results

From an initial analysis of the data, a number of trends have emerged. Individuals with TBI were more likely than comparison participants to have continued their normal routines with regard to leaving the house and in-person social visits. Individuals with TBI were less likely to have increased virtual communication. One third of individuals with TBI indicated that brain injury has made coping with the pandemic more difficult, and participants identified changes in routine, social isolation,

Conclusions

Responses to this survey suggest that healthcare providers should look for ways to address increased stress and social isolation for individuals with disability during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. We will discuss a number of direct suggestions from participant responses.

Author(s) Disclosures

The authors report no disclosures.

Keywords

Traumatic Brain Injury, Disability, COVID-19, Social Communication

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