Introduction

The ICF taxonomy draws a distinction between consciousness and orientation, which are the first two categories appearing within the block of Global mental functions. Publication of the Glasgow Coma Scale heralded a standardized approach to measuring coma based on the quantification of systematic observations of behavioral responses. An increasing number of scales have been developed to detect fine gradations of change in these patients, and a selection of these is described. The ICF classifies delirium within the category of consciousness; specifically, quality of consciousness. Most delirium scales have been developed for people with a variety of medical conditions, often the older population. Many scales assessing delirium were identified in literature review. The importance of the duration of post-traumatic amnesia is that it is a commonly used index of the severity of the initial injury and is one of the best predictors of recovery and outcome.