Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the usefulness of evaluations concerning return to normal life for patients with brain damage. The data were collected from 38 subjects with brain damage (17 to 55 years of age, FIQ ≥ 80, without aphasia and visuospatial disorders). Intelligence, attention, memory and executive functions were evaluated using the WAIS-R, RBMT, BADS, CAT (excluding CPT), TMT and Kana-hiroi tests. The subjects were divided into two groups : an employed group (including return to work/school) and an unemployed group (including welfare working, part-time job), and the scores of the two groups were compared. In our study, the results of the Kana-hiroi test, Tapping Span forward, Visual Cancellation Task 2, Memory Updating Test Span 4, Visual delayed recall II, BADS total compensation and age profile scoring points, and six elements test were very useful indicators of ability to return to normal life. The form of employment also influenced return to work. It is generally thought that it is difficult for neuropsychological tests to evaluate whether a return to normal life is possible, but in our study, attention, memory and executive function tests were useful to evaluate the possibility of return to normal life because age and severity of symptoms were well controlled. Above all, we suggest that the BADS six elements test is useful because it reflects ability of returning to work directly.
