Quality of life and coping strategies of brain injured patients in context of support for social and professional reintegration.

OBJECTIVE: The causes responsible for a brain injuries are various. Whatever its origin (traumatic, vascular, tumor or anoxic), the after effects lead to a chronic disability that affects durably the quality of life (QOL) of brain injured patients but also the strategies in place to cope with the difficulties they face (coping). The objective of this study is to compare the quality of life and the coping strategies between patients with a traumatic brain injury and with those with other type of brain injuries.

MATERIAL/PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty patients were enrolled in a neuropsychological assessment week in a context of support for social and professional reintegration. Twenty-nine are victims of traumatic brain injury (TC group) and 21 have vascular, tumor or anoxic cerebral lesions (group "Other"). Participants completed a scale of QOL specific for people with brain injury (QOLIBRI) and a generic scale of coping (Brief COPE). Comparison average tests were made.

RESULTS: Patients in the TC group has a level of discomfort related to QOL compared to physical conditions more important than the patients in the "Other" group (t=4.55, P<.01). 'TC' patients appear also to use more coping strategy "blame" than the "Other" patients (U=203.5, P=.043).

DISCUSSION-CONCLUSION: The discomfort due to the slowness and/or clumsiness of movements, pain or even difficulties to see or hear, appears more prevalent for people who have had a TC. Moreover, disability generated by the TC seems to lead people to upbraid themselves to face difficulties related to the brain injury. In this context of support for social and professional reintegration, this raises the question of relationships that such emotions and thoughts in the management difficulties faced by people with brain lesions for each of etiologies. These results could lead future clinical prospects.