Abstract
To systematically review the evidence that childhood traumatic brain injury (TBI) is associated with risk behavior in adolescence and young adulthood. Risk behavior included one or more of the following: use of substances, including alcohol, tobacco, and illicit substances; involvement in criminal behavior; and behavioral issues with conduct. A literature search was conducted using these terms: child, pediatric, traumatic brain injury, head injury, adolescent, psychosocial, antisocial, conduct, substance use. Studies describing original research were included if they reported outcomes over the age of 13 years in participants who sustained a TBI between birth and age 13 years. Six journal articles were reviewed based on 4 separate studies. Three articles indicated a relationship between childhood TBI and increased problematic substance use in adolescence and young adulthood. Three articles supported an association between childhood TBI and later externalizing behavior; however, 2 articles did not support this link. More research is warranted to explore the association between childhood TBI and later risk behavior as the relationship is not currently understood. Future research should build on existing longitudinal research with continued use of medical records for identifying TBI and inclusion of a non-brain-related trauma group to control for general injury effects.
Highlights
1 article in the current review used a cross-sectional design, the UK study by Tonks and colleagues.[13]
This study was based on a cohort of participants recruited from occupational therapy services compared with an age- and gender-matched group of controls
The aim of this review was to explore any association between childhood traumatic brain injury (TBI) and risk behavior in adolescence and young adulthood
Summary
1 article in the current review used a cross-sectional design, the UK study by Tonks and colleagues.[13] This study was based on a cohort of participants recruited from occupational therapy services compared with an age- and gender-matched group of controls. The parents and teachers of the children, who were aged between 10 and 16 years at the time of assessment, completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire[16] to investigate emotional difficulties in the participants. Both parent and teacher ratings of conduct disorders, peer problems, and negative impact of behavior in the home environment for the TBI participants were higher than for no injury control
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