title: Auditory and visual impairments in patients with blast-related traumatic brain injury: Effect of dual sensory impairment on Functional Independence Measure.
abstract: The frequencies of hearing impairment (HI), vision impairment (VI), or dual (hearing and vision) sensory impairment (DSI) in patients with blast-related traumatic brain injury (TBI) and their effects on functional recovery are not well documented. In this preliminary study of 175 patients admitted to a Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center, we completed hearing and vision examinations and obtained Functional Independence Measure (FIM) scores at admission and discharge for 62 patients with blast-related TBI. We diagnosed HI only, VI only, and DSI in 19%, 34%, and 32% of patients, respectively. Only 15% of the patients had no sensory impairment in either auditory or visual modality. An analysis of variance showed a group difference for the total and motor FIM scores at discharge (p < 0.04). Regression model analyses demonstrated that DSI significantly contributed to reduced gain in total ( t = -2.25) and motor ( t = -2.50) FIM scores ( p < 0.05). Understanding the long-term consequences of sensory impairments in the functional recovery of patients with blast-related TBI requires further research.
authors.affiliation: Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Henry L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Lew
authors.forename: Donn W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Garvert
authors.forename: Terri K
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Pogoda
authors.forename: Pei-Te
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.forename: Jennifer M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Devine
authors.forename: Daniel K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: White
authors.forename: Paula J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Myers
authors.forename: Gregory L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Goodrich
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D055826:Afghan Campaign 2001-; D001753:Blast Injuries / Q000150:complications*; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000150:complications*; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D034381:Hearing Loss / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D006787:Hospitals, Veterans; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D054542:Iraq War, 2003-2011; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008889:Military Personnel; D012047:Rehabilitation Centers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*