Utility of the revised Westmead PTA scale in the acute assessment of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) - further analysis

E. A. Shores, A. Lammel, J. Batchelor, C. Hullick, M. Flynn

    Research output: Contribution to journalMeeting abstract

    10 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    This study explored the diagnostic utility of the revised Westmead PTA Scale compared to the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) in the acute assessment of adult (aged 18 to 60) emergency presentations with mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBI). Eighty-two patients with recently sustained mTBI and post-traumatic amnesia symptoms were routinely assessed with the GCS and the revised Westmead PTA Scale during their hourly four-hour observation period while occupying a bed in the emergency department. Before discharge, patients were assessed with the Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Test (ImPACT) to obtain independent scores on multiple aspects of their cognitive functioning. Data was compared to adult emergency presentations with ailments other than mTBI (N=88). Between-groups MANOVA revealed a significant multivariate effect of mTBI on test performance (p<.001). Multiple linear regressions were conducted on all measured aspects of cognitive functioning, revealing that the revised Westmead PTA Scale explained greater variance (28%) in cognitive scores compared to the GCS (<1%). Based on these findings, the revised Westmead PTA Scale is a better predictor of outcome than the GCS in patients with less severe head injuries. Using the revised Westmead PTA Scale as an early assessment tool may help clinicians to be more confident in patient assessment, management and care.

    Keywords

    • mild traumatic brain injuries
    • post-traumatic amnesia symptoms
    • revised Westmead PTA scale

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