Incidence and outcomes of pediatric patients with dual diagnosis of traumatic spinal cord injury and brain injury on an inpatient rehabilitation unit

This study looks at children who have both a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and a spinal cord injury (SCI). It's important because there's not much information about how often this happens and how well these children do in rehabilitation. The study found that TBI might be happening more often than doctors realize in children with SCI. Sometimes, the signs of TBI are missed because the SCI seems more obvious. The good news is that all the children in the study got better during their time in the hospital, no matter if they had a TBI or not. However, the study suggests doctors should be more careful about looking for TBI in children with SCI to make sure they get the best care.

• 1
  The initial incidence of dual diagnosis (TBI and SCI) was 27%, but after a retrospective review, it was suggested that TBI may be underdiagnosed, potentially raising the incidence to 73%.
• 2
  Motor vehicle collisions (MVC) were the most common cause of injury leading to both TBI and SCI, although the difference across the groups was not statistically significant.
• 3
  Agitation, disinhibition, cognitive concerns, and attention problems were specifically noted in the dual diagnosis and suspected dual diagnosis groups.