Minor head injury: impact on general health after 1 year. A prospective follow-up study.

A prospective follow-up study of 51 patients hospitalized due to minor head injury (MHI) was performed. After one year 28 patients answered the General Health Questionnaire, the Impact of Event Scale and a symptom checklist. A significant impact on general wellbeing attributed to head injury, was indicated. Half of the patients reported some sequelae from head injury, only 25% to a degree that resulted in a case score on General Health Questionnaire. Incidence of prominent post-traumatic stress symptoms was around 20%. Outcome seemed without correlation to trauma severity. Patients with sequelae after one year reported more symptoms at one week after trauma, and the results point to the magnitude of the health problems due to sequelae throughout follow-up. Aspects of prevention and treatment are discussed.