Teen Concussions Increase Risk for Depression
Jim LiebeltJim Liebelt's Blog
- 2014 Jan 13
Teens with a history of concussions are more than three times as likely to suffer from depression as teens who have never had a concussion, finds a new study in the Journal of Adolescent Health.
"What this study suggests is that teens who have had a concussion should be screened for depression," said lead study author Sara Chrisman, M.D., a pediatrician at Seattle Children's Hospital.
Concussion, considered a mild traumatic brain injury, can also have serious psychological effects. Most prior research on these psychological effects has focused on adults. However, many teens experience concussions through sports injuries or accidents, and less is known about long-term complications in adolescents.
The study used data from the 2007-2008 National Survey of Children's Health and included health information from over 36,000 adolescents ages 12 to 17. 2.7 percent of the sample had had a concussion and 3.4 percent had a current depression diagnosis.
Teens who were 15 years or older, lived in poverty or who had a parent with mental health problems were more likely to be depressed than other teens, said Chrisman, "but what was surprising was when we took those factors into consideration, it didn't take away from the association between depression and a history of concussion."