Sleep-Awake Patterns Following Cerebral Concussion

This study compared sleep-awake patterns in clients following head injury with their sleep-awake patterns prior to head injury. Data were collected from 75 subjects who had experienced a minor head injury (MHI) with a disturbance in consciousness three months prior to filling out a questionnaire. The majority of the clients were males, 16 to 30 years old, who had been involved in a motor vehicle accident which resulted in MHI. Questions related to the sleep-awake patterns before and after head injury. Sleep-awake patterns following head injury differed from sleep-awake patterns prior to head injury in the following sleep indicatorssleep interruptions per week and per night increased significantly (p < .004, p < .001) as did the time needed to function at peak efficiency upon awakening (p < .001). The subjects reported significant increases (p < .02) in the number of times per month in which they were unable to return to sleep after an early morning awakening coupled with the difficulty in returning to sleep (p < .04). Overall, the clients reported significantly decreased sleep quality (p < .02) and increased complaints about sleep following head injury (p < .001). An increase in the time of consciousness disruption following head injury was related to the subjects having a tendency to sleep longer and to recall fewer, less vivid dreams. A decreased level of consciousness upon admission to the emergency department at time of injury correlated with the increased number of arousals during the sleep cycle and the reduced intensity of auditory stimulus needed to interrupt sleep. The anatomical site of the head injury and the duration of post-traumatic amnesia (PTA) were found to have no significant effect upon sleep-awake patterns following MHI.