The effect of multimodal sensory stimulation on physiological parameters and consciousness levels in ICU-admitted traumatic brain injury patients: a clinical trial design

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) represents the most prevalent debilitating neurological condition among adults. Sensory deprivation, resulting from cerebral damage, prolonged immobilization, social isolation, and critical illness, constitutes a major complication for ICU-admitted TBI patients. Implementing safe, simple stimulation protocols may significantly enhance recovery outcomes. This study investigated the impact of multimodal sensory stimulation on arterial oxygen saturation, hemodynamic parameters (heart rate and blood pressure), and consciousness levels in TBI patients requiring intensive care. In this clinical trial, 64 TBI patients meeting inclusion criteria were enrolled through convenience sampling. Participants were randomly allocated to intervention or control groups using a lottery-based randomization method. The patients in the intervention group attended a regular and periodic sensory stimulation program (consisting of various sensory stimulations including auditory, visual, olfactory, tactile, and vestibular stimulations) conducted by the researcher for two 30-minute sessions per day for 6 days. However, no intervention was performed for the patients in the control group. Arterial blood oxygen, heart rate, blood pressure, and consciousness levels of the patients in the two groups were measured before and after each intervention at similar intervals. Data were collected using a demographic information questionnaire and biophysiological tools such as pulse oximetry, sphygmomanometer, and the Glasgow Coma Scale. The collected data were analyzed with SPSS version 27 and the significance level was set at < 0.05. The mean age of participants was 36.63 ± 15.59 years in the intervention group and 36.59 ± 16.84 years in the control group, with male participants accounting for 57.8% of the sample. The most common cause of TBI was trauma. The average changes in arterial blood oxygen, heart rate, blood pressure, and level of consciousness between the two control and intervention groups and also over time showed a significant difference (P < 0.01). The data revealed that multimodal sensory stimulation positively affected arterial blood oxygen, heart rate, blood pressure, and consciousness level of TBI patients and improved the physiological condition of the patients. Thus, multimodal sensory stimulation can be used as a complementary treatment, which has received less attention due to various reasons, including time constraints, shortage of medical staff, the use of superior technologies, and the increased complexity of the required care.