SynthesisAnnals of clinical and translational neurology2024
Predicting outcome in disorders of consciousness: A mega-analysis.
Synthesis in Annals of clinical and translational neurology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Prediction models for functional outcomes in prolonged disorders of consciousness: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation · 2025Pooled it
- Rehabilitation Outcomes in Patients Who Regained Consciousness.Neurology international · 2026Article
- Long-term HRV metrics may assist in differentiating between prolonged disorders of consciousness and emergence from minimally conscious state : a cross-sectional study.Acta neurologica Belgica · 2026Article
- Neuroimaging of Disorder of Consciousness: From Brain Network Mechanisms to Clinical Translation.Journal of clinical neurology (Seoul, Korea) · 2026Review
- From detection to decision: a conceptual framework of uncertainty migration in disorders of consciousness.Frontiers in neurology · 2026Review
- Disorders of consciousness diagnosis, interventions, and prognostication for the intensivist: Report of the 2025 ISICEM roundtable.Intensive care medicine · 2026Review
- Differences in Coma Recovery Scale-Revised performance in an upright position versus lying position.Frontiers in neurology · 2025Article
- Identifying Features of Electroencephalography Associated with Improved Awareness in Persistent Vegetative State via Multiscale Entropy: A Machine Learning Modeling Study.Neurotrauma reports · 2025Article
- From scales to circuits: integrating behavioral diagnosis and neural biomarkers for improved classification in disorders of consciousness.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2025Article
- Participatory Development of an International Information Brochure on the Multimodal Assessment of Disorders of Consciousness.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2024Article
- Neurophysiological predictors of full clinical consciousness recovery in patients with DoC: a retrospective evaluation of the DoC-NP Score.Frontiers in neurologyArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveAssessing recovery potential in patients with disorders of consciousness (DoC) is pivotal for guiding clinical and ethical decisions. We conducted a mega-analysis of individual patient data to understand (1) if a time threshold exists, beyond which regaining consciousness is almost impossible, and (2) how recovery varies based on factors such as diagnosis, etiology, age, sex, and neuropsychological status.
methodsA systematic literature search revealed a total of 3290 patients. In this sample, we performed a Cox proportional hazards analysis for interval censored data.
resultsWe observed a late saturation of probability to regain consciousness in Kaplan-Meier curves, and the annual rate of recovery was remarkably stable, in that approximately 35% of patients regained consciousness per year. Patients in minimally conscious state (MCS) recovered more frequently than patients in unresponsive wakefulness syndrome (UWS). No significant difference was observed between the recovery dynamics of MCS subgroups: MCS+ and MCS-. Patients with hypoxic brain lesions showed worse recovery rate than patients with traumatic brain injury and patients with vascular brain lesions, while the latter two categories did not differ from each other. Male patients had moderately better chance to regain consciousness. While younger UWS patients recovered more frequently than older patients, it was not the case in MCS.
interpretationOur findings highlight the necessity for neurologists to exercise caution when making negative predictions in individual cases, challenge traditional beliefs regarding recovery timelines, and underscore the importance of conducting detailed and prolonged assessments to better understand recovery prospects in DoC.
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Registered trials
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