Abstract
Introduction Psychopathology following traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a common and debilitating consequence that is often associated with reduced functional and psychosocial outcomes. There is a lack of evidence regarding the neural underpinnings of psychopathology following TBI, and whether there may be transdiagnostic neural markers that are shared across traditional psychiatric diagnoses. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to examine the association of MRI-derived markers of brain structure and function with both transdiagnostic and specific psychopathology following moderate-severe TBI.
Methods and analysis A systematic literature search of Embase (1974–2022), Ovid MEDLINE (1946–2022) and PsycINFO (1806–2022) will be conducted. Publications in English that investigate MRI correlates of psychopathology characterised by formal diagnoses or symptoms of psychopathology in closed moderate-severe TBI populations over 16 years of age will be included. Publications will be excluded that: a) evaluate non-MRI neuroimaging techniques (CT, PET, MEG, EEG); b) comprise primarily a paediatric cohort; c) comprise primarily penetrating TBI. Eligible studies will be assessed against a modified Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Instrument and data will be extracted by two independent reviewers. A descriptive analysis of MRI findings will be provided based on qualitative synthesis of data extracted. Quantitative analyses will include a meta-analysis and a network meta-analysis where there is sufficient data available.
Ethics and dissemination Ethics approval is not required for the present study as there will be no original data collected. We intend to disseminate the results through publication to a high-quality peer-reviewed journal and conference presentations on completion.
PROSPERO registration number CRD42022358358
Article Summary Strengths and limitations of this study:
This is a comprehensive review of MRI markers of psychopathology among adults with moderate – severe traumatic brain injuries.
We will investigate neural correlates across the spectrum of psychopathology rather than focusing on specific diagnoses, allowing for transdiagnostic investigations of brain structure and function alterations after TBI with comorbid psychopathology.
We will be restricting eligible studies to English language.
We will capture pre-injury psychopathology where data are available and analyse the associations with post-injury psychopathology and neural correlates.
Competing Interest Statement
The authors have declared no competing interest.
Funding Statement
This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Author Declarations
I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained.
Yes
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Yes
I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance).
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I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines and uploaded the relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material as supplementary files, if applicable.
Yes
Footnotes
Registration ID: CRD42022358358 (PROSPERO)
alexia.samiotis1{at}monash.edu, 89 Bridge Road Richmond, VIC, 3121
amelia.hicks{at}monash.edu
jennie.ponsford{at}monash.edu
gershon.spitz{at}monash.edu
Funding statement This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Competing interests All authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.
Data statement Statistical code will be available from the Open Science Framework (OSF).
Data Availability
Statistical code will be available from the Open Science Framework (OSF).