Prospective, Head-to-Head Study of Three Computerized Neurocognitive Assessment Tools Part 2: Utility for Assessment of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in Emergency Department Patients.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability and validity of three computerized neurocognitive assessment tools (CNTs; i.e., ANAM, DANA, and ImPACT) for assessing mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) in patients recruited through a level I trauma center emergency department (ED).



mTBI (n=94) and matched trauma control (n=80) subjects recruited from a level I trauma center emergency department completed symptom and neurocognitive assessments within 72 hr of injury and at 15 and 45 days post-injury. Concussion symptoms were also assessed via phone at 8 days post-injury.



CNTs did not differentiate between groups at any time point (e.g., M 72-hr Cohen's d=-.16, .02, and .00 for ANAM, DANA, and ImPACT, respectively; negative values reflect greater impairment in the mTBI group). Roughly a quarter of stability coefficients were over .70 across measures and test-retest intervals in controls. In contrast, concussion symptom score differentiated mTBI vs. control groups acutely), with this effect size diminished over time (72-hr and day 8, 15, and 45 Cohen's d=-.78, -.60, -.49, and -.35, respectively).



The CNTs evaluated, developed and widely used to assess sport-related concussion, did not yield significant differences between patients with mTBI versus other injuries. Symptom scores better differentiated groups than CNTs, with effect sizes weaker than those reported in sport-related concussion studies. Nonspecific injury factors, and other characteristics common in ED settings, likely affect CNT performance across trauma patients as a whole and thereby diminish the validity of CNTs for assessing mTBI in this patient population. (JINS, 2017, 23, 293-303).
1Medical College of Wisconsin,Milwaukee,Wisconsin.
Lindsay D
LD
Nelson
1Medical College of Wisconsin,Milwaukee,Wisconsin.
Robyn E
RE
Furger
1Medical College of Wisconsin,Milwaukee,Wisconsin.
Peter
P
Gikas
1Medical College of Wisconsin,Milwaukee,Wisconsin.
E Brooke
EB
Lerner
2New York University School of Medicine,New York,New York.
William B
WB
Barr
1Medical College of Wisconsin,Milwaukee,Wisconsin.
Thomas A
TA
Hammeke
3Loyola University Medical School,Maywood,Illinois.
Christopher
C
Randolph
4University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,Chapel Hill,North Carolina.
Kevin
K
Guskiewicz
1Medical College of Wisconsin,Milwaukee,Wisconsin.
Michael A
MA
McCrea
D000328:Adult; D001924:Brain Concussion / Q000175:diagnosis*; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests / Q000592:standards*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult
Concussion; Emergency department; Mild traumatic brain injury; Neurocognitive testing; Neuropsychological testing