Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42455215›Full record

ReviewNeuropsychology review2026

Cognitive Outcomes Following Paediatric Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Studies up to 2025.

Chloe M Anderson, Vanessa C Rausa, Audrey McKinlay, Tibor Schuster, Mike Lloyd, Aria Huang, Tracey Chau, Thilanka Morawakage, Vicki Anderson, Michael Takagi

Abstract readReview
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Neuropsychology review, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Chloe M AndersonMurdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, 50 Flemington Rd, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia. chloe.anderson@monash.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0001-5369-8022
Vanessa C RausaDepartment of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville VIC 3010, Australia.
Audrey McKinlayDepartment of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville VIC 3010, Australia.
Tibor SchusterDepartment of Family Medicine, McGill University, 5858 Ch de La Côte Des Neiges, Montreal, QC, H3S 1Z1, Canada.
Mike LloydSchool of Public Health and Preventative Medicine, 553 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia.
Aria HuangMurdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, 50 Flemington Rd, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia.
Tracey ChauMurdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, 50 Flemington Rd, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia.
Thilanka MorawakageMurdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, 50 Flemington Rd, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia.
Vicki AndersonDepartment of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville VIC 3010, Australia.
Michael TakagiDepartment of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville VIC 3010, Australia. Michael.takagi@monash.edu.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The purpose of this review was to provide a systematic and quantitative summary of recent literature relating to cognitive outcomes following paediatric mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). Variable findings and diverse methodologies have thus far made it difficult to meaningfully integrate the extant literature. In this context, there is a need to examine the factors that define heterogeneity in this population and to critically evaluate the methodologies from which variable outcomes are derived. Studies identified in this review (PROSPERO, identification number CRD42015030098) were obtained through systematic searches of PubMed, PsycInfo and Scopus. Inclusion criteria specified that studies were to report on cognitive functioning using validated neuropsychological measures, with children aged 8-18 years of age and in a case-control design protocol. In this review, 62 observational studies published pre-2025 were summarised in terms of participant, injury-related and methodological characteristics, with 49 of these studies also contributing to meta-analyses on nine cognitive-factor domains at five distinct time points post-injury. Data from 14,234 participants were represented across all studies, including 5,000 injury cases, and 9,234 controls. Findings from this review revealed that studies reporting on cognitive outcomes varied largely as a function of methodology. There appears to have been little refinement in methodologies over the last decade, with multiple possible sources of heterogeneity identified. Therefore, in line with previous research, the findings of this review suggest little to no evidence of clinically meaningful long-term cognitive impacts post mTBI. The review highlights a number of areas for improvement in future research.

Indexed as

Cognitive outcomesConcussionMeta-analysisMild traumatic brain injury

Identifiers

PMID42455215

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.