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42 Associations Between Mild Traumatic Brain Injury, Executive Function, and Criminal Justice Involvement among Veterans and Service Members: a LIMBIC-CENC study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 December 2023

Becky K Gius*
Affiliation:
University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA. Psychology Service, South Texas Veterans Health Care System, San Antonio, TX, USA.
Lauren F. Fournier
Affiliation:
University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA.
Tea Reljic
Affiliation:
Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA.
Terri K. Pogoda
Affiliation:
Center for Healthcare Organization and Implementation Research, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA. Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
John D. Corrigan
Affiliation:
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
Maya Troyanskaya
Affiliation:
Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, TX, USA. Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Houston, TX, USA.
Cooper B. Hodges
Affiliation:
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.
Shannon R Miles
Affiliation:
Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences Service, James A Haley Veterans’ Hospital, Tampa, FL, USA. Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
Amanda Garcia
Affiliation:
Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences Service, James A Haley Veterans’ Hospital, Tampa, FL, USA.
*
Correspondence: Becky Gius, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL; South Texas Veterans Health Care System, San Antonio, TX, bkgius@usf.edu
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Abstract

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Objective:

To examine relationships between history of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), neuropsychological measures of executive function, and lifetime history of criminal justice (CJ) involvement among combat-exposed Veterans and Service Members (V/SM).

Participants and Methods:

Participants were combat-exposed V/SM who completed a baseline assessment for the multicenter Long-term Impact of Military-Relevant Brain Injury Consortium - Chronic Effects of Neurotrauma Consortium study (N=1,341) and had adequate engagement/symptom reporting on measures of performance and symptom validity (i.e., Medical Symptom Validity Test and Mild Brain Injury Atypical Symptoms Scale). Neuropsychological battery included the Trail Making Test (A and B), Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-IV (WAIS-IV) Digit Span subtest, and the National Institute of Health (NIH) Toolbox Flanker subtest. Lifetime history of brain injury, criminal justice involvement, and demographics were collected. Participants were 87% male, 72% white, with a mean age of 40 years (SD=9.67). Eighty-one percent had at least some college education. Nineteen percent were active duty. Eighty percent of Veterans and 86% of Service Members reported a history of >1 mTBI, and of these 31% and 47% respectively experienced 3+ mTBIs.

Results:

Three groups were composed based on level of involvement with the CJ system: 1.) No history of arrests or incarcerations (3+ mTBIs: 64%), 2.) A lifetime history of arrest but no felony incarceration (3+ mTBIs: 34%), and 3.) A lifetime history of felony incarceration (3+ mTBIs: 2%). Ordinal regression analyses revealed that performance on a working memory task (Digit Span; b= 0.024, p= .041; OR= 1.024) was significantly associated with increased CJ involvement after adjusting for age, education, service status, and mTBIs. Performance on measures of processing speed (Trails A), set-shifting (Trails B), and inhibition (Flanker) were not significantly associated with CJ involvement. Number of mTBIs was significantly and positively associated with level of CJ involvement in all four models; Digit Span (p= .016), Trails A (p= .016), Trails B (p= .020), and Flanker (p= .008).

Conclusions:

Performance on most measures of executive functioning was not significantly associated with CJ involvement in this large, representative sample of V/SM who served in combat. Although performance on a working memory task was significantly associated with CJ involvement, the size of the effect was small and the association was in the opposite direction as expected. Number of mTBIs was significantly associated with level of CJ involvement, indicating that sustaining multiple mTBI may be linked to greater risk of CJ involvement. These findings suggest that social and psychological factors beyond executive dysfunction may better explain the relationship between history mTBIs and CJ involvement. Some aspects of military service and veteran status, such as interdisciplinary treatment for brain injury and physical, mental, and psychosocial health needs, may be protective against previously identified risk factors for arrest (e.g., deficits in executive functioning). Contextualizing mTBI within the larger behavioral health profile of V/SM, with emphasis placed on intervention for related co-morbidities, may reduce the impact of previous arrest on wellbeing and/or reduce the risk of future CJ involvement.

Type
Poster Session 02: Acute & Acquired Brain Injury
Copyright
Copyright © INS. Published by Cambridge University Press, 2023