Factors affecting the prognosis for children in a persistent vegetative state / 中华物理医学与康复杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To explore the factors affecting the prognosis for a child in a persistent vegetative state (PVS).Methods Forty-three PVS children were selected and provided with comprehensive rehabilitation training.It included physical therapy such as Rood approach and range of joint movement training,medication and hydro-acupuncture at the head points.After three months,each patient's state of consciousness was quantified,and multiple-factor unconditional logistic regression was conducted to identify factors relating to any changes.Results By the end of the intervention,29 of the patients had regained consciousness,a recovery rate of 67％.Logistic regression revealed that age,brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEP) and PVS score at admission all were closely related with whether a child regained consciousness.Gender,type of damage,EEG score,and the initial time of intervention had no significant relationship with regaining consciousness.Conclusions Older PVS patients with higher BAEPs and PVS scores at admission are more likely to regain consciousness.