Early cognitive and affective sequelae of traumatic brain injury: a study using the BNI Screen for Higher Cerebral Functions.

OBJECTIVE: To demonstrate that the Barrow Neurological Institute (BNI) Screen for Higher Cerebral Functions (BNIS) can be used to briefly assess cognitive and affective disturbances during the acute stages after traumatic brain injury (TBI).

DESIGN AND OUTCOME MEASURES: People with TBI were administered the BNIS during the first 60 days after injury and their performance compared to a convenience sample of control subjects used in the standardization of the BNIS.

SETTING: Inpatient units of a neurological institute and medical center.

SUBJECTS: Forty-two individuals with moderate-to-severe TBI and 21 control subjects.

RESULTS: Compared to patients with TBI, control subjects performed significantly better on the BNIS total and all subtest scores. TBI patients were best classified by poor performance on measures of affect disturbance and impaired awareness. Stepwise discriminant analysis identified disturbances in memory, awareness, and affect as contributing most to the classification of an individual as having TBI.

CONCLUSIONS: Both cognitive and affective disturbances can be directly assessed during the early stages after significant TBI. The BNIS can be used for this purpose and help document that TBI specifically affects memory, awareness, and affect during its early stages and should be addressed in rehabilitation.