Citation

Pielmaier L, Milek A, Nussbeck FW, Walder B, Maercker A. J. Loss Trauma 2013; 18(6): 521-538.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/15325024.2012.719342

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Long-term psychological distress has been reported among significant others of patients who sustained a traumatic brain injury (TBI). This study examined the course and potential predictors of posttraumatic stress symptoms in a relative sample (N = 135) drawn from a national cohort study on severe TBI in Switzerland. Latent growth mixture model analyses revealed two main groups: Across 3, 6, and 12 months after the accident, 63% of the sample indicated fairly low symptom severity ("resilient" course), whereas 37% showed persistence of "higher distress" as indicated by elevated scores on the Impact of Event Scale-Revised. Group membership was significantly associated with self-reported dysfunctional disclosure style. Implications for research and practice are discussed.