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N/A N=50 Randomized Treatment

Enhanced Problem-Solving Training

Brain Concussion

Enrolled (actual)
50
Serious AEs
6.0%
Results posted
Aug 2024
Primary outcome: Primary: Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18) Global Severity Index T-Score — 64.21; 65.26; 66.8; 61.35 units on a scale — p=.04

Study Design & Population

Study type
Interventional
Phase
N/A
Interventions
Enhanced Problem-Solving Training (E-PST) (Behavioral); Healthy Living Messages (HLM) (Behavioral); Enhanced Problem-Solving Training (E-PST) (non-randomized) (Behavioral)
Age
Adult, Older Adult · 18+ yrs
Sex
All
Sponsor
VA Office of Research and Development
Primary completion
Jun 2023

Outcome Measures

OutcomeResultp-value
PRIMARY
Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18) Global Severity Index T-Score
64.21; 65.26; 66.8; 61.35; 61.11; 57.0 .04 sig
SECONDARY
Applied Cognition-General Concerns-Short Form (ACGC-8a)
40.44; 44.47; 38.94; 40.80; 40.66; 44.95
SECONDARY
Applied Cognition-Abilities-Short Form (ACA-8a)
43.16; 41.52; 44.06; 42.50; 44.46; 39.00
SECONDARY
Hopkins Verbal Learning Test-Revised (HVLT-R)
34.11; 38.12; 38.19; 35.99; 33.88; 35.44
SECONDARY
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale- Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV) Digit Span
7.16; 6.95; 7.47; 7.10; 7.72; 7.06
SECONDARY
Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)
11.95; 11.95; 11.7; 10.57; 11.07; 8.6
SECONDARY
PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL5)
31.15; 27.90; 40.3; 31.04; 28.67; 35.3
SECONDARY
Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption Questions (AUDIT-C)
2.90; 4.37; 2.37; 4.21; 1.95; 4.00
SECONDARY
Brief Addictions Monitor-Revised (BAM-R)
2.47; 3.02; 2.69; 3.91; 2.39; 3.73
SECONDARY
Pain Symptom Survey (PEG)
5.28; 5.56; 5.36; 4.89; 4.67; 4.74
SECONDARY
Patient Global Impressions of Change (PGIC)
4.19; 2.87; 4.19; 2.92
SECONDARY
World Health Organization Quality of Life - BREF (WHOQOL-BREF)
12.66; 13.23; 12.21; 13.40; 12.86; 12.57

Summary

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is among the most common injuries sustained by Veterans of Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom. It is also highly co-morbid with mental health conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. While mTBI alone is not typically thought to cause lasting deficits in personal functioning or cognitive abilities, Veterans with a history of mTBI nonetheless report chronic psychological distress, as well as subjective difficulties with attention, concentration, poor frustration tolerance, and decision-making. Although current clinical practice guidelines for mTBI emphasize primary care-based symptom management, there are presently no evidence-based interventions to treat mental health symptoms in this setting. This research proposal therefore seeks to adapt and pilot test a brief, primary care-based intervention (E-PST) to reduce psychological distress in Veterans with mTBI by augmenting problem-solving skills, and helping them to develop specific cognitive and behavioral skills to improve upon their self-reported cognitive inefficiencies. The investigators hypothesize that Veterans who complete E-PST will report improvements in psychological distress compared to participants in the control condition.

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

  • OEF/OIF/OND Veteran
  • history of mild Traumatic Brain Injury and persistent post-concussion-like symptoms of 3 months
  • Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18) T-score > 53
  • enrolled in VA primary care (appointment within last 12 months)
  • English speaking, able to read and write, and able to comprehend study materials

Exclusion Criteria

  • prior, current, or pending enrollment in a cognitive rehabilitation program or other specific TBI intervention program
  • moderate to severe TBI or other major neurocognitive disorder
  • psychotic disorder, e.g.: schizophrenia spectrum disorder, delusional disorder, schizotypal personality disorder, bipolar or depressive disorder with psychotic features
  • acute suicidal ideation
  • inpatient psychiatric hospitalization within the past 12 months
  • any other illness or condition that would preclude or predictably influence ability to travel to, or engage in, study visits, as determined by the study team
View full record on ClinicalTrials.gov →

Data sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03759223). Outcome figures and adverse-event rates are extracted automatically from the registry's posted results and are provided for clinician reference, not as a substitute for the primary publication.

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