Multi-level outcomes for young adults with acquired brain injury through a remote intensive cognitive rehabilitation approach: a pilot intervention study

ABSTRACT

Objective

To investigate the effects of the Intensive Cognitive and Communication Rehabilitation (ICCR) program for young adults with acquired brain injury (ABI) using a quasi-experimental pilot intervention study design while transitioning to remote implementation.

Method

Twelve young adults with chronic ABI (treatment n = 7; control n = 5) participated in ICCR (i.e., lectures, seminars, individual cognitive rehabilitation (CR), technology training) for six hours/day, four days/week, for one or two 12-week semesters. Outcomes included classroom metrics, individual therapy performance, including Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS), standardized cognitive-linguistic assessments, and participation and health-related quality of life (QOL) measures.

Results

In the first semester (in-person and remote), treatment participants significantly improved in classroom exams; individual therapy (i.e., memory, writing, GAS); executive function and participation measures, but not QOL. In the second semester (remote), treatment participants significantly improved in classroom exams; essay writing; individual therapy (i.e., writing and GAS); and memory assessment, but not in participation or QOL. Treatment participants enrolled in consecutive semesters significantly improved in classroom exams, individual therapy (i.e., memory), participation and QOL, but not on standardized cognitive assessments. Controls demonstrated no significant group-level gains.

Conclusion

These preliminary results highlight the benefit of intensive, integrated, and contextualized CR for this population and show promise for its remote delivery.

KEYWORDS:

• Cognitive rehabilitation
• education
• traumatic brain injury
• stroke
• language
• executive functioning

Acknowledgments

The authors appreciate the ICCR participants and their caregivers for their participation, current and previous members of the Aphasia Research Laboratory for their support in data collection. The office of the Dean of Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences provided funding for the ICCR program. Natalie Gilmore was funded by NIH/NIDCD F31DC017892 (PI: Gilmore).

Disclosure statement

Christianna Gilbert and Anne Citorik are salaried employees at Boston University. Dr. Kiran is a scientific advisor to and cofounder of Constant Therapy Health. Constant Therapy data was collected but was not analyzed or reported in this manuscript. None of the other authors (N.G., G.M.) have any conflicts of interest to report. This study was approved, regulated, and overseen by the Boston University Institutional Review Board.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders [F31DC017892].