Sleep disturbance across the subacute recovery phases following traumatic brain injury.

Abstract

After a traumatic brain injury (TBI), individuals experience a period of confusion known as posttraumatic amnesia (PTA), lasting days to months. During PTA, ≈80% of individuals present with sleep disturbance alongside other symptoms (e.g., memory problems, agitation). Sleep disturbance during early TBI recovery is largely under researched, despite evidence that it negatively affects patient outcomes and recovery. Our aim was to evaluate the trajectory of sleep disturbance during early TBI recovery by measuring sleep using gold-standard polysomnography (PSG) in patients experiencing PTA and again following the resolution of PTA.