Article

Neuroimaging studies identified either focal and/or non-specific
frontotemporolimbic damage resulting from mild-complicated to severe traumatic
brain injury (TBI) in a subset of 12 children 8-12 years of age who were part of
the Social Outcomes of Brain Injury in Kids (SOBIK) study. The influence of
identifiable damage on social behavior was examined. METHODS: Magnetic resonance
imaging was obtained on average 2.5 years post injury wherein cases with distinct
abnormalities were selected. Various direct, performance-based measures of
cognitive-social-emotional functioning were obtained along with data regarding
peer relations and friendships in the classroom. RESULTS: Overall, children with
TBI were impaired on tasks of social-emotional processing compared to children
with orthopedic injury (OI). Ten of the 12 children with TBI had multiple areas
of impaired social-emotional functioning in comparison to OI controls. With
regards to friendships, four of the nine children with TBI who had classroom data
had no mutual friends, four also received low peer acceptance ratings, and two
were perceived by peers as having high levels of rejection/victimization in the
classroom. CONCLUSIONS: Children with frontotemporolimbic or diffuse damage
demonstrated variable social outcomes from their TBI. Results are discussed in
terms of the heterogeneity of TBI-related abnormalities and their relationship to
social behavior.

Langue : ANGLAIS