Persistent disability is a risk factor for late-onset mental disorder after serious injury

Abstract

Background: Most of what we know about the psychiatric consequences of injury is limited to the first year. Determining the prevalence of and risk factors for psychiatric morbidity beyond one year will aid service development and facilitate timely diagnosis and treatment. The aim of this prognostic study was to determine the prevalence of mental disorders in the three years following serious injury and to identify risk factors for the onset of new disorders after 1 year.Methods: Of 272 patients assessed in hospital following serious injury, 196 (72.1%) were reassessed at 3 years. Assessment involved gold standard semi-structured interviews for psychiatric diagnoses, risk factors for mental d..