Interactive Effects of Traumatic Brain Injury and Anxiety Sensitivity Cognitive Concerns on Post-traumatic Stress Among Active Duty Soldiers

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) history has been repeatedly linked with heightened risk for post-traumatic stress (PTS) among active duty soldiers. Yet, no research to date has examined the relationship between TBI and PTS in the context of anxiety sensitivity cognitive concerns (ASCC), a well-established cognitive-affective risk factor for PTS that may intensify the effects of TBI on PTS via the amplification of TBI-related symptoms of cognitive dyscontrol. The present study tested the moderating effects of ASCC on the relationship between the number of lifetime probable TBIs and PTS among a sample of 89 trauma-exposed active duty soldiers. Results demonstrated that high ASCC potentiated the relationship between number of probable TBIs and PTS while low ASCC muted this association. Interestingly, ASCC was more closely related to PTS among those with a greater number of probable TBIs compared to those with zero past TBIs. These results underscore the importance of ASCC in the association of TBI and PTS