Frequency of Post-Concussion Syndrome in Korean Patients with Minor Head Injury

Lee,  Ji Young; Yoon,  Young Hoon; Lewis,  Roger J; Tolles,  Juliana

doi:2017.30.2.41

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Original Article

Journal of Trauma and Injury 2017;30(2):41-46.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.20408/jti.2017.30.2.41 Published online June 30, 2017.

Frequency of Post-Concussion Syndrome in Korean Patients with Minor Head Injury

Ji Young Lee, Young Hoon Yoon, Roger J Lewis, Juliana Tolles

¹Department of Emergency Medicine, Korea University, Guro Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
²Department of Emergency Medicine, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, California, USA. jtolles@emedharbor.edu
³Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute, Torrance, California, USA.
⁴David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, USA.

Received: 15 May 2017 • Revised: 15 May 2017 • Accepted: 15 May 2017

Abstract

PURPOSE
To determine the incidence of post-concussion syndrome (PCS) in Korean patients after minor traumatic brain injury.
METHODS
We conducted an observational cohort study of a convenience sample of patients presenting to the emergency department of a major academic Korean hospital. Patients who visited the Emergency Department for head trauma were screened. A researcher questioned the subject regarding his or her symptoms. Subjects were contacted by phone approximately 2 weeks after their Emergency Department visit and questioned about subsequent symptoms and subsequent visits for medical care.
RESULTS
Only 8% of subjects reported any post-concussion symptoms. Only 0.4% had three or more symptoms which might have met criteria for PCS. The median peak onset of symptoms was 3 days after injury.
CONCLUSION
The incidence of PCS is Korean patients is much lower than that documented for patients in the United States or other western countries. On the other hand, this study results could give an idea that mild trauma could also cause the PCS. Further study is needed to replicate this finding and investigate possible explanations for this difference.

Key Words: Brain injuries; Traumatic; Post-concussion syndrome

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