Neurobehavioral Progress and Signs of Transition in Children with Prolonged Disorders of Consciousness: A Retrospective Longitudinal Study with the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised

BackgroundResearch on disorders of consciousness in children is scarce and includes disparate and barely comparable participants and assessment instruments, and therefore provides inconclusive information on the clinical progress and recovery in this population. This study retrospectively investigated the neurobehavioral progress and the signs of transition between states of consciousness in a group of children admitted to a rehabilitation program either with an unresponsive wakefulness syndrome (UWS) or in a minimally conscious state (MCS).MethodsSystematic weekly assessments were conducted with the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R) until emergence from MCS, discharge or death.ResultsTwenty-one children, nine admitted with a UWS and 12 admitted in an MCS were included in the study. Four children with a UWS transitioned to an MCS with a CRS-R of 10 [9.2–12.2] by showing visual pursuit visual fixation, or localization to noxious stimulation. Twelve children emerged from the MCS with a CRS-R of 20.5 [19–21.7]. Children who emerged from the MCS had had a shorter time post-injury and higher CRS-R at admission, compared to those who did not emerge.ConclusionAlmost half of the children who were admitted with a UWS transitioned to an MCS and almost all who were admitted in a MCS emerged from this state. Children who emerged had shorter times since injury and higher scores on the CRS-R at admission, compared to those who did not emerge.