Study Design This study utilized a cross-sectional design that assessed patients with a history of TBI (TBI) admitted to a substance use disorder (SUD) treatment program at a Recovery Point in West Virginia. This design provided a point-in-time measure of TBI prevalence in this population and allowed for finding associations between TBI and substance use.

Participants The participant sample that was selected included individuals who were 18 years or older and confirmed that they had been admitted to the substance use disease treatment program. Those eligible individuals were recruited through admissions; the inclusion criteria included participants to be screened for a potential history of TBI using the Ohio State University TBI identification method (OSU-TBI-ID) (Bogner et al., 2009). The only participants included in this study were individuals who screened positive for TBI and were included in the study cohort demographic information, which included age, gender, and substance use history. This information was collected as part of the mental health assessment administered by trained non-physician personnel.

Data Collection Data were collected during the standard intake procedure at Recovery Point. The ASAM provided essential contextual data for each participant, which included mental health history and substance use patterns.

Data Analysis The de-identified data analysis obtained from the ASAM was conducted at the University of Arkansas. The Center for Excellence in Disabilities facility allowed the research team to complete their data entry, and the pooled data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and SPSS software.

Ethical Considerations The Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval for the study was obtained from West Virginia University, and the study adhered to the ethical principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki. Informed consent was obtained from all participants before participating, and all data were kept confidential to protect participants’ privacy. This study included some limitations, which include self-reports for substance use and TBI history. Future research could benefit from longitudinal designs to further explore these relationships.

The authors have declared no competing interest.

This study did not receive any funding

I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained.

Yes

The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below:

The Institutional Review Board approval for the study was obtained from West Virginia University, and the study adhered to the ethical principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki. Informed consent was obtained from all participants before participating, and all data were kept confidential to protect participants privacy. This study included some limitations, which include self-reports for substance use and TBI history. Future research could benefit from longitudinal designs to further explore these relationships.

I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals.

Yes

I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance).

Yes

I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines, such as any relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material, if applicable.

Yes

All data produced in the present study are available upon reasonable request to the author Lura Leech