Clinical evaluation of the Trauma Outcome Profile (TOP) in the longer-term follow-up of polytrauma patients.

BACKGROUND: No sufficiently validated disease-specific instrument is available to assess patient outcome after polytrauma. The aim of this investigation was to test the recently published Trauma Outcome Profile (TOP) in the longer-term outcome of multiply injured patients.
METHODS: Single centre validation study on the TOP in comparison with objective and subjective measures of patient, injury or treatment characteristics and longer-term outcome (e.g. medical outcomes study Short Form-36, SF-36; Nottingham Health Profile, NHP; working capacity), at least 2 years following trauma in 117 survivors of polytrauma (injury severity score, ISS>16), using comparative analysis and correlation testing of prospectively collected data.
RESULTS: Patients' mean weighted self-rating with regard to the 10 single TOP dimensions of Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL, 0-100) ranged from lowest values for mental functioning (52.6+33.5) to highest values for daily activities (79.0+27.5). The rate of persons who indicated an abnormal level of function or pain increased significantly from pre-injury status (2% and 5%, resp.) to 46% for both values at longer-term follow-up (p<0.001). Observed associations between single dimensions or TOP component summary scores with the corresponding values from general HRQol instruments, such as the SF-36, resulted in R (Pearson) up to 0.85. Survivors of polytrauma who presented with a reduced working capacity (RWC) at longer-term follow-up in all TOP dimensions included a significantly higher rate of patients conspicuous for a relevantly reduced outcome compared with those with a non reduced working capacity (NRWC) (posttraumatic stress disease, PTSD: p<0.05; all other dimensions: p<0.001). Patients with a RWC were characterised by an almost fivefold probability of reduced outcome with regard to the TOP dimensions 'social interaction' or 'satisfaction' (odds ratio, OR 12.4 (95% CI 5.1-30.1) and 12.5 (4.0-39.0), resp.).
CONCLUSIONS: This first clinical and methodological evaluation in a well defined cohort of polytrauma patients found the TOP to be a reliable and well discriminating score covering both relevant general and trauma-specific aspects of longer-term outcome. Despite these promising primary results, until further validation, the TOP should be used together with already accepted HRQoL measures to allow adequate international comparison of data in the future.