Deficits in emotional recognition and perception following traumatic
brain injury (TBI) have been associated with alexithymia (Henry et al.,
2006; Williams et al., 2001). This study examined the prevalence of
alexithymia in a TBI population, and its relationship to injury severity,
neuropsychological ability and affective disorder. A total of 121 patients
completed the Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20), a measure that
addresses 3 distinct characteristics of the alexithymia concept;
difficulty identifying feelings, difficulty describing feelings, and
externally oriented thinking. Patients also completed a neuropsychological
assessment and measures of depression and anxiety. Results confirm a high
prevalence of alexithymia after TBI, relative to the general population
and an orthopedic control group. There was no relationship between injury
severity and the presence of alexithymia. A negative relationship was
found between alexithymia and verbal and sequencing abilities, but there
was no relationship with executive dysfunction or any other cognitive
domain. Moderate correlations were obtained between alexithymia and
affective disorder; regression analyses indicated that alexithymia,
depression, and anxiety should be considered distinct, but overlapping
constructs. The results of this study suggest that increased
neuropsychological attention should be directed towards emotional change
after head injury and its relationship with cognition and psychosocial
outcome. (JINS, 2007, 13, 471–479.)