Guest editorial--Mild traumatic brain injury, Part 2 Treatment and support

Issue: BCMJ, vol. 48, No. 10, December 2006, Page 500 Editorials
By: Derryck H. Smith, MD, FRCPC

In this second of our two-part issue about mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), we continue to explore ways to assess, manage, and support patients who are experiencing physical, cognitive, or behavioral problems as a result of injury.

In this second of our two-part issue about mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), we continue to explore ways to assess, manage, and support patients who are experiencing physical, cognitive, or behavioral problems as a result of injury.

This is the second of a two-part series on mild traumatic brain injury. In the first issue (BCMJ 2006;48[9]:440-459) we looked at early intervention, neuropsychological assessment, and the management of concussion in sports.

The first article in this part of our series provides a wealth of information about services for patients, family members, and caregivers. These services include brain injury programs, rehabilitation resources, and associations that offer support for people with mTBI.

The second article considers the psychiatric illnesses associated with mTBI, and stresses the importance of referring and treating individuals who experience depression, anxiety disorders, personality change, or other psychiatric disturbances after brain injury.

Again I highly recommend the following web sites:

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: www.cdc.gov. This site contains excellent information about mTBI for physicians, patients, and families. "Heads Up: Facts for Physicians about mTBI" (www.cdc.gov/ncipc/pubres/tbi_toolkit/physicians/mtbi/index.htm) is particularly good.

• Brain Injury Association of America: www.biausa.org.

• International Brain Injury Association: www.internationalbrain.org.

I want to conclude by thanking my colleagues and the editorial staff at the BCMJ for bringing these articles to fruition, and hope that doctors, particularly family doctors, find the articles and web sites offer practical advice in our ongoing effort to improve the treatment of patients who suffer from traumatic brain injuries.

—Derryck H. Smith, MD, FRCPC
Head, Department of Psychiatry, 
Children’s and Women’s Health Centre of British Columbia,
Clinical Professor, 
University of British Columbia

Derryck H. Smith, MD, FRCPC. Guest editorial--Mild traumatic brain injury, Part 2 Treatment and support. BCMJ, Vol. 48, No. 10, December, 2006, Page(s) 500 - Editorials.


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