Coping strategies, social support, life orientation and health-related quality of life following traumatic brain injury

Objective: To study coping strategies, social support and life orientation in patients following moderate and severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) in relation to health-related quality of life. Subjects: Eighty-five patients with moderate or severe TBI and 68 control persons. Methods: Estonian versions of the COPE-D test, the Brief Social Support Questionnaire, the Life Orientation Test and the RAND-36 questionnaire. Results: Persons with TBI reported using task-oriented and social/emotional support strategies less often and avoidance-oriented strategies more often than control persons (p < 0.05). The social support network, satisfaction with it and optimism as life orientation were lower in the patient group (p < 0.05). Task-oriented coping styles, satisfaction with social support and optimistic life orientation were associated with the majority of the domains of health-related quality of life and resuming work after TBI. Conclusions: To achieve effective rehabilitation and to enhance patients' well-being, it is important to improve the quality and amount of social support network, as well as to support patients' adequate coping efforts for promoting an active lifestyle.