Curie Brief
Turn on cookies to sign in
Signing in saves your progress to your Curie account. We can only do that with cookies on — turn them on to continue.
News
Sending mild TBI patients home with standardized educational handouts cuts unplanned ER return visits nearly in half, a new study finds. Researchers also flagged a concerning disparity: Hispanic patients were more than twice as likely to return. The findings point to easy, low-cost fixes that could meaningfully improve post-concussion care.
A retrospective study of 733 mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) patients found that handing out prepopulated educational materials at ED discharge was associated with significantly fewer unplanned return visits (URVs) within 8 weeks. Patients who received the handouts returned at a rate of 9.3%, compared to 15.8% for those who didn't — a difference that held up even after adjusting for other factors.
The study, published in The American Journal of Emergency Medicine, also uncovered notable disparities. Hispanic patients had more than twice the odds of returning to the ED compared to non-Hispanic patients, and patients injured from falls were over three times more likely to return than those with sports-related injuries. Notably, fall and motor vehicle collision patients were also less likely to receive educational handouts in the first place.
Key Takeaways:
Why it matters: Unplanned ER returns are costly and disruptive for patients and health systems alike. This study suggests that a simple, scalable intervention — a standardized discharge handout — could reduce them, while also highlighting equity gaps that warrant closer attention.
