Differences in Satisfaction with Life Among Individuals Diagnosed with TBI Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic (S28.005)

Abstract

<h3>Objective:</h3> To characterize differences in life satisfaction ratings of individuals who were diagnosed with traumatic brain injury (TBI) before the pandemic with individuals diagnosed with TBI during the pandemic. <h3>Background:</h3> The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges in health care. One group thought to be particularly vulnerable to these disruptions are individuals with disabilities, including those with TBI. The nature of TBI, coupled with the pandemic’s impacts on social and healthcare system domains, necessitates further exploration into how life satisfaction ratings of individuals diagnosed and recovering from TBI <i>during</i> the COVID-19 pandemic compare to those diagnosed and recovering from TBI <i>prior</i> to the pandemic. <h3>Design/Methods:</h3> Data of individuals with moderate-to-severe TBI from June 2019 to June 2022 were retrieved from the Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems National Database (n=154). <i>Pre-COVID</i> and <i>During-COVID</i> cohorts were created based on the date of TBI diagnosis relative to the onset of the pandemic with no overlapping dates. Satisfaction With Life Scales (SWLS) scores collected 1-year post-TBI diagnosis were used as the primary outcome measure. <h3>Results:</h3> Two-way ANOVA and post-hoc Tukey tests were used to analyze data. A significant main effect of sex was revealed, with females reporting lower SWLS scores than males across both <i>Pre-COVID</i> and <i>During-COVID</i> cohorts (p&lt;0.05). Additionally, females in the <i>During-COVID</i> cohort reported significantly lower SWLS scores than both females and males within the <i>Pre-COVID</i> cohort (both p&lt;0.05). <h3>Conclusions:</h3> Women are particularly vulnerable to lower life satisfaction following a TBI diagnosis compared to men, and the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this finding. This study invites future investigation into the specific factors that contribute to this pattern. Furthermore, the compounding effects from the pandemic may help to illuminate these factors, identify new causes, and devise mitigation mechanisms. Heightened awareness and additional support from healthcare providers, especially in this late pandemic period, may improve outcomes among this group. <b>Disclosure:</b> Ms. Dugan has nothing to disclose. Mr. Hovhannesyan has nothing to disclose. Ms. Chun has nothing to disclose. Mr. Tran has nothing to disclose. Mr. Mariani has nothing to disclose. Dr. Atamna has nothing to disclose.