Racial and ethnic disparities in functional, psychosocial, and neurobehavioral outcomes after brain injury.

Because of the growing minority population in the past 3 decades in the United States and the increasing numbers of individuals who sustain a traumatic brain injury (TBI), researchers and clinicians have started to pay more attention to the role of race and ethnicity in outcomes after TBI, with the goal of better serving this population. The aim of this article is to review the literature on the influence of race/ethnicity on functional, psychosocial, and neurobehavioral outcomes after TBI. Specifically, the following 8 areas of outcomes will be examined: (1) treatment outcomes, (2) neuropsychological outcomes, (3) employment/productivity, (4) functional outcomes, (5) community integration, (6) marital status, (7) quality of life/life satisfaction, and (8) emotional/neurobehavioral outcomes. To conclude this review, suggestions for improvements in professional competency, research, systems of care, and training are proposed.