Therapeutic effects of a traditional Chinese medicine decoction on cognitive impairment complicated with pulmonary infection after traumatic brain injury

Abstract

Objective To investigate the effects of a traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)decoction on cognitive dysfunction complicated with pulmonary infection after traumatic brain injury. Methods From February 2016 to March 2017, 80 patients with cognitive dysfunction after traumatic brain injury, who also had lung infection at admission to our hospital, were enrolled and randomly divided into a control group and an observation group, with 40 cases in each.Patients in the control group received conventional treatment with antibiotics and donepezil, and patients in the observation group were administered a TCM decoction in addition to what was given to the control group.Mini-mental state examination(MMSE)scores and pulmonary symptom scores before and after treatment as well as adverse reactions were compared between the two groups. Results After treatment, MMSE scores were higher in the observation group than in the control group(23.88±5.90 vs.20.11±6.37, t=2.746, P=0.007), and pulmonary symptom scores were lower in the observation group than in the control group(4.39±2.01 vs.6.13±2.24, t=3.656, P=0.007). The total incidence of adverse reactions showed no significant difference between the two groups(P>0.05). Conclusions The TCM decoction has clear benefits and high safety in treating cognitive impairment complicated with pulmonary infection after brain injury.It can improve cognitive ability and clinical symptoms of the lungs, and should be recommended. Key words: Brain injuries; Pneumonia; Cognition disorders