Describe the impact of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) on patient quality of life (QoL) by illustrating the ways that TBI may affect patients’ independence, relationships, activities, and vision of their future. 

Each year, approximately 1.5 million Americans have a traumatic brain injury (TBI), resulting in a myriad of symptoms that impact patients’ ability to work, socialize and partake in their hobbies. Therefore, it is important to elucidate which factors most significantly impact life quality after TBI. 

This was a descriptive cross-sectional study with a questionnaire that consisted of questions graded on a 5-point Likert scale, two validated surveys, and open-ended questions. Every patient who received treatment for TBI by one neurologist from 01JAN2022 to 30JUN2022 was invited. Descriptive statistics were performed for demographics and survey questions. Chi-square and Mann-Whitney U analyses were used to determine relationships. LISAT-11 and QOLIBRI questions were evaluated using logistic regression. 

We found 67.9% of subjects reported that TBI negatively impacted their QoL. Patients’ reported their TBI impacted their QoL by affecting their independence (60.4%), relationships (73.6%), hobbies (61.2%), and careers (54.7%). Those who lived alone and those who were single scored lower on some measures of life satisfaction compared to those who lived with others and those who were in relationships (p<0.05 for both). We also found that women reported a greater impact of their TBI on some activities, including driving (p=0.009) and exercising (p=0.026), than men. 

The majority of survivors of TBI reported a significant negative impact of their injury on their QoL. Predictors of lower quality of life after TBI included female gender, living alone and being single. This stresses the importance of understanding patients’ social situation during recovery from neurologic illness, including TBI.