Treatment Comparison for College Students with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

Abstract

Purpose: We compared an established cognitive-linguistic treatment protocol to a novel treatment protocol which incorporated injury-related education for college students with traumatic brain injury (TBI).Method: Twelve college students with TBI received remote treatment per one of two protocols. Treatment targeted a distinct cognitive-linguistic domain per session in three, individual, one-hour sessions occurring between seven and fourteen days apart. Quality of life, TBI-related knowledge, likelihood of academic achievement, confidence, and treatment satisfaction outcome measures were used to characterize outcomes and were administered prior to and following treatment. Results: Both treatment conditions produced significant improvement in participants’ confidence, though confidence change did not differ across condition. Change in performance on predictive measures of academic achievement before and following treatment was statistically significantly more positive or less negative for participants treated in the established approach. Treatment satisfaction was statistically significantly higher for participants in the novel approach. Quality of life and TBI-related knowledge were not affected. Conclusion: Both treatment protocols may benefit individuals with TBI, but the established approach may improve likelihood of academic achievement. In contrast, the novel approach may increase treatment satisfaction. Clinicians should personalize their approach for individual clients. Research further exploring treatment and educational components is warranted.