Functionally impaired patients diagnosed predominantly with mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) exhibit high rates of insomnia and short sleep, which may impede TBI recovery. This according to a recent study that investigated risk for functional impairment during the first 6 months of TBI recovery based on sleep onset insomnia symptoms and short sleep. Patients presenting to the Emergency Department (ED) at Johns Hopkins Hospital within 24 hours of head injury (n=238) were evaluated for TBI. They completed in-person surveys and phone interviews to provide follow-up data on global functioning, sleep, and depressive symptoms at 1, 3, and 6 months post-injury. Researchers found:

• Sleep quality and global functioning improved over the 6 months of TBI recovery, but patients were at increased risk for functional impairment when sleeping poorly.
• Sleep onset insomnia symptoms and short sleep both independently corresponded to poor global functioning.
• Functional impairment was highest among those with both insomnia and short sleep (43-79%) compared to good sleepers (15-25%) and those with short sleep (29-33%) or insomnia alone (33-64%).
• A bidirectional relationship between sleep quality and functioning was observed.