- Authors:
- Subtitle:
- a three-year follow-up study in a Danish cohort of long-term sickness absentees
- DOI:
- 10.1186/1471-2458-14-113
- Abstract:
- BACKGROUND: The chronic course of whiplash-associated disorder (WAD) has implications for both the individual and society. It has been shown that up to 50% of patients have not yet returned to work six months after a whiplash injury. We wanted to study the return-to-work (RTW) process in individuals sick-listed for more than eight weeks in six Danish municipalities. RTW in individuals sick-listed due to WAD was compared to that in those sick-listed for other musculoskeletal disorders (MSD). METHODS: Information about long-term sick-listed individuals in six Danish municipalities was retrieved from an existing database. Data on public transfer income were collected and the RTW process was followed on a weekly basis. Multivariate logistic regression analysis of RTW was done four times during the first three years after the start of sick-listing. RESULTS: One hundred and four individuals were sick-listed due to WAD and 3,204 individuals were sick-listed due to other MSDs. After 6 months, the RTW was significantly lower in the WAD group. OR for RTW in the WAD group was 0.29 (0.18-0.49) compared to the MSD group. The RTW process for both groups stabilised after two years of follow-up; 44% returned to work in the WAD group as compared to 58% in the MSD group. CONCLUSION: Sick-listed individuals with whiplash-associated disorder are less likely to return to work than individuals who are sick-listed because of other musculoskeletal disorders. In both groups, RTW stabilised after two years of follow-up.
- Type:
- Journal article
- Language:
- English
- Published in:
- Bmc Public Health, 2014, Vol 14, Issue 113, p. 1-7
- Keywords:
- Follow-Up Studies; semrap-2014-1; Journal Article
- Main Research Area:
- Medical science
- Publication Status:
- Published
- Review type:
- Peer Review
- Submission year:
- 2014
- Scientific Level:
- Scientific
- ID:
- 260111169
