ACICR 2007 -2008 Annual Report Addendum - Alberta Centre for ...

Determinants of Depression in Whiplash-Associated Disorders (WAD)
Background
Goal
Objectives
Status
Partners & Sponsors
Contact
Depressive symptoms are common after whiplash injuries. Over 40% of persons
with a traffic-related whiplash injury develop depressive symptomatology within
the first six weeks after the collision, and another almost 20% develop these
symptoms later in the recovery period. Most of those who develop depressive
symptoms after a whiplash injury experience good mood recovery, but 18%
experience recurrent depressed mood and another 18% have persistent depressive
symptoms during the year following the injury.
Depressive mood increases the personal and societal burden of whiplash.
Identifying those at risk of persistent or recurrent depressed mood after a
whiplash injury may permit early intervention for those individuals.
The objective of this project is to identify features that predict whether an
individual will develop depressive symptoms after a whiplash injury, whether that
depression occurs early or later in the recovery process, and whether that
depressed mood will resolve well, or will go on to be recurrent or persistent.
Ongoing.
Institutional Affiliations
• University of Alberta
• University of Toronto
Dr. Linda J. Carroll, Associate Professor
Phone: (780) 492-9767
Email: lcarroll@ualberta.ca
Epidemiology of Head Injury
Background
Objective
Status
There has been only one population-based study of head injury in Canada to date.
To examine eleven years of hospitalizations related to head injury for the province
of British Columbia.
Data analysis is currently being conducted.
Partners & Sponsors • Faculty of Nursing, University of Alberta
Contact
Dr. Don Voaklander, Associate Professor & Director
Phone: (780) 492-0454
Email: don.voaklander@ualberta.ca
Alberta Centre for Injury Control & Research Page 41 of 66 Annual Report Addendum 2007/2008