Access to Rehabilitation After Hospitalization for Traumatic Brain Injury: A National Longitudinal Cohort Study in Sweden

BACKGROUND: Rehabilitation is suggested to improve outcomes following traumatic brain injury (TBI), however, the extent of access to rehabilitation among TBI patients remains unclear. OBJECTIVE: To examine the level of access to rehabilitation after TBI, and its association with health and sociodemographic factors. METHOD: We conducted a longitudinal cohort study using Swedish nationwide healthcare and sociodemographic registers. We identified 15 880 TBI patients ≥18 years hospitalized ≥3 days from 2008 to 2012 who were stratified into 3 severity groups; grade I (n = 1366; most severe), grade II (n = 5228), and grade III (n = 9268; least severe). We examined registered contacts with specialized rehabilitation or geriatric care (for patients ≥65 years) during the hospital stay, and/or within 1 year post-discharge. We performed a generalized linear model analysis to estimate the risk ratio (RR) for receiving specialized rehabilitation or geriatric care after a TBI based on sociodemographic and health factors. RESULTS: Among TBI patients, 46/35% (grade I), 14/40% (grade II), and 5/18% (grade III) received specialized rehabilitation or geriatric care, respectively. Being currently employed or studying was positively associated (RR 1.7, 2.3), while living outside of a city area was negatively associated (RR 0.36, 0.79) with receiving specialized rehabilitation or geriatric care. Older age and a prior substance use disorder were negatively associated with receiving specialized rehabilitation (RR 0.51 and 0.81). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest insufficient and unequal access to rehabilitation for TBI patients, highlighting the importance of organizing and standardizing post-TBI rehabilitation to meet the needs of patients, regardless of their age, socioeconomic status, or living area.