INCIDENCE AND CORRELATES OF DEPERSONALIZATION FOLLOWING HEAD TRAUMA

Using the criteria of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R Dissociative Disorders (SCID-D), we assessed the incidence of feelings of unreality among a sample of 70 persons who had sustained head inju ries. Among those whose head trauma could be classfied as mild, more t han 60% complained of a depersonalization syndrome. Among those with a significant period of unconsciousness, only 11% had similar complaint s. There was a high comorbidity with post-traumatic stress disorder an d vertigo. Feelings of unreality were not associated with cognitive im pairment or elevated personality test scores, nor were there significa nt relationships with gender or involvement in litigation. A conservat ive estimate of incidence of depersonalization among persons with mino r head trauma is 13%, while, at the upper end, as many as 67% of perso ns who sustain mild head injury may experience feelings of unreality.