Clinical indices of head injury and memory impairment.

In a prospective follow-up of memory functions after head injury, 61 patients were tested with P.G.I. Memory Scale at the end of 18 months. Patients with acceleration injuries showed a poor performance in comparison to those with contact injuries. Memory was found to be related to indices of severity of injury, particularly post traumatic amnesia (PTA). Presence of fracture of skull or early neurological deficits was not associated with poor performance. Among contact injury patients, lateralization and location of the injury were not found to be discriminatory. Behaviour changes during follow-up were not significantly related to memory impairment.