Abstract

Background: the treatment of cognitive-communication disorder (CCD) has proven an adequate approach to the social well-being of people with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Objective: describe the types of treatment and therapeutic ingredients — and their effectiveness — available for the direct treatment of CCD in people with TBI. Method: a systematic review following PRISMA guidelines was carried out. The effectiveness of each type of treatment and the therapeutic ingredients available were assessed. Results: 22 articles met inclusion criteria. Three interventions (rehabilitation of emotional perception-regulation and social cognitive skills, pragmatic skills and conversation/interaction) achieved recommendation A. All therapeutic ingredients (education, functional goals, progressive approach, modelling, skills practice, feedback, simulation, practice with peers, emotional adjustment) had sufficient evidence for recommendation level A. Conclusions: direct communication treatment is an effective approach for people with brain injury and should be included as a practice standard. The need to develop a generic model to treat CCD that combines therapeutic ingredients from diverse interventions is discussed.