Demographic, medical, and psychiatric factors in work and marital status after mild head injury.
OBJECTIVE
To explore factors associated with long-term outcomes of work and marital status in individuals who had experienced a mild head injury (MHI), as well as those who had not.


METHODS
Population-based study using logistical regression analyses to investigate the impact of preinjury characteristics on work and marital status.


METHODS
Two groups of Vietnam-era Army veterans: 626 who had experienced a MHI an average of 8 years before examination, and 3,896 who had not.


METHODS
Demographic characteristics, concurrent medical conditions, early life psychiatric problems, loss of consciousness (LOC), and interactions among these variables were used to predict current work and marital status.


RESULTS
Multiple variables were associated with work and marital status in the sample with MHI, accounting for approximately 23% and 17% of the variance in these two outcome variables, respectively. In contrast, the same factors accounted for significantly less variance in outcome in the sample without a head injury-13.3% and 9.4% for work and marital status, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings suggest a more potent role for and increased vulnerability to the influence of demographic, medical, and psychiatric factors on outcomes after a MHI. That is, MHI itself moderates the influence of preinjury characteristics on work and marital status. In addition, in those who had a MHI, moderator relationships were found between education and LOC for both work and marital status. Similarly, complex moderator relationships among race, region of residence, and LOC were found for both work and marital status outcomes.
Vanderploeg
Rodney D
RD
The James A. Haley Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Defense and Veterans Head Injury Program, Psychology Service 116B, Tampa, FL 33612, USA. Rodney.Vanderploeg@med.va.gov
Curtiss
Glenn
G
Duchnick
Jennifer J
JJ
Luis
Cheryl A
CA
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D004522:Educational Status; D004651:Employment; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D017533:Marital Status; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000150:complications; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D044469:Racial Groups; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D014474:Unconsciousness / Q000150:complications; D014481:United States