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Special communication| Volume 97, ISSUE 2, SUPPLEMENT , S1-S4, February 2016

Sex, Gender, and Traumatic Brain Injury: A Commentary

  • Angela Colantonio
    Correspondence
    Corresponding author Angela Colantonio, PhD, OT, FACRM, FCAHS, Rehabilitation Sciences Institute, University of Toronto, 160-500 University Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1V7, Canada.
    Affiliations
    Rehabilitation Sciences Institute and Department of Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    Toronto Rehabilitation Institute–University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    Search for articles by this author

      Abstract

      The goal of this supplemental issue is to address major knowledge, research, and clinical practice gaps regarding the limited focus on brain injury in girls and women as well as limited analysis of the effect of sex and gender in research on acquired brain injury. Integrating sex and gender in research is recognized as leading to better science and, ultimately, to better clinical practice. A sex and gender analytical approach to rehabilitation research is crucial to understanding traumatic brain injury and improving quality of life outcomes for survivors. Put another way, the lack of focus on sex and gender reduces the rigor of research design, the generalizability of study findings, and the effectiveness of clinical implementation and knowledge dissemination practices. The articles in this supplement examine sex and gender using a variety of methodological approaches and research contexts. Recommendations for future research on acquired brain injury that consciously incorporates sex and gender are made throughout this issue. This supplement is a product of the Girls and Women with ABI Task Force of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine.

      Keywords

      List of abbreviations:

      ABI (acquired brain injury), ACRM (American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine), NIH (National Institutes of Health), TBI (traumatic brain injury)
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