Differences in iq and Memory of Monolingual/Bilingual Children who Suffered a tbi

Procedure 
 
After a child received a TBI and had been brought to the Loma Linda University 
Children’s Hospital, it was determined whether the TBI was considered to be mild, 
moderate, or severe by staff in the Emergency Department. If the child met criteria for a 
moderate to severe TBI according to GCS ratings and/or the Mayo Classification System, 
the parents were approached by the study’s research coordinator and asked if they would 
like their child to be in the study. Parents then provided informed consent while the child 
was hospitalized at the Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital and when possible the 
child provided assent (Ashwal, 2005).  
All participants underwent neuropsychological evaluations at 3 months and 12 
months post injury. These evaluations were conducted at the Loma Linda University 
Healthcare Department of Pediatric Psychology Research. The 3-month time period was 
determined to be the earliest that neuropsychological measures would be stable as a result 
of variation in post-traumatic amnesia and coma (Ashwal, 2005). The 12-month time 
period was selected so that data could be analyzed in conjunction with magnetic 
resonance spectroscopy imaging; however, the imaging data will not be used in this study 
(Ashwal, 2005). The specific neuropsychological measures that were used included the 

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Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI) and the Children’s Memory Scale 
(CMS). These assessments are well standardized and have been used at Loma Linda for 
follow-up testing in children who have undergone traumatic brain injury.
Participants were contacted for their 3-month and 12-month neuropsychological 
assessment appointments by the neuropsychological post-doctoral fellow and/or research 
assistant. Each participant’s IQ and memory was assessed using the WASI and CMS. The 
assessor then scored and interpreted the results of the assessment. A brief report was 
written up that included recommendations and referrals when appropriate. Oral feedback 
was provided to the parent of the participant an average of one week after the child was 
assessed after both the 3 and 12 month evaluations. After feedback was completed, the 
child’s report was mailed to the parents to keep for their own records. As the language 
fluency questionnaire was not included in the original study, in conjunction with IRB 
approval, parents and participants were contacted via telephone and the questionnaire was 
administered orally.