The Impact of Learning Disorders on Clinical Measures Following Concussion

Abstract Objective To examine differences in clinical measures between adolescents with dyslexia, ADD/ADHD, and those without a learning disorder (LD) following concussion. Method Data from the North Texas Concussion Registry (ConTex) were extracted. Participants ages 10–18 with a diagnosed concussion within 30 days of enrollment were included and categorized based on self-reported prior diagnosis of dyslexia, ADD/ADHD, and no history of LD. ImPACT, King-Devick (KD), SCAT-5 symptom log, Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-8), and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) scale were compared between groups using a one-way ANOVA followed by a Tukey test for multiple comparisons. Results Of 993 eligible participants, 68 had dyslexia, 141 had ADD/ADHD, and 784 had no history of LD. There were significantly more male participants in the ADD/ADHD group compared to the no LD group (64.5% vs. 50.3%, p = 0.002). No other demographic differences were noted between groups. In the dyslexia group, SCAT-5 symptom score was higher (36.22 vs. 28.27, p = 0.037) and ImPACT visual motor control was lower compared to the no LD group (28.87 vs. 32.99, p = 0.027). In the ADD/ADHD group, ImPACT symptom score was higher (30.69 vs. 20.94, p < 0.001) and visual motor control was lower compared to the no LD group (30.05 vs. 32.99, p = 0.009). KD time (62.1 sec), PHQ-8 (5.79), and GAD-7 (5.06) were higher in the ADD/ADHD group compared to the no LD group (56.5 sec, 4.32, 3.56; p = 0.022, p = 0.003, p = 0.002). Conclusions Differences in clinical measures were seen in participants with a history of dyslexia and ADD/ADHD that may aid providers in their evaluation following adolescent concussion.