Prediction of return-to-work of low back pain patients sicklisted for 3–4 months

• Published in: Pain (Amsterdam) Vol. 87; no. 3; pp. 285 - 294
• Main Authors: van der Giezen, Anneke M, Bouter, Lex M, Nijhuis, Frans J.N
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 01.09.2000; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adult; Analysis of Variance; Biological and medical sciences; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Forecasting; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Health Status Indicators; Humans; Illness and personality; Illness, stress and coping; Job Satisfaction; Long-term disability; Low back pain; Low Back Pain - economics; Low Back Pain - psychology; Low Back Pain - rehabilitation; Male; Middle Aged; Netherlands - epidemiology; Odds Ratio; Prognosis; Prospective Studies; Psychology and medicine; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Return-to-work; Sick leave; Sick Leave - economics; Sick Leave - statistics & numerical data; Socioeconomic Factors; Surveys and Questionnaires; Work - economics; Work - psychology; Work - statistics & numerical data; Netherlands; Sick leave; Low back pain; Return-to-work; Long-term disability; Human; Prognosis; Lumbar spine; Diseases of the osteoarticular system; Spine disease; Back to work; Disability; Pain; Employee; Health status; Rachialgia; Job satisfaction; Behavior
• ISSN: 0304-3959; 1872-6623
• DOI: 10.1016/S0304-3959(00)00292-X

The purpose of this Dutch prospective population-based study was to identify prognostic factors for return-to-work of employees with 3–4 months sick leave due to low back pain (LBP). A cohort of 328 employees was formed and baseline data were collected. One year after the first day of the sick leave, 91% of the original cohort participated in a second interview ( n=298). During the baseline measurement, information was collected about health status, history of LBP, occupational variables, job characteristics and social economic variables. At the second interview, 66% of the employees had returned to work ( n=198). Return-to-work was independently predicted by having a better general health status (OR 1.53; 95% CI 1.30–1.80), having better job satisfaction (OR 1.26; 95% CI 1.11–1.44), being a bread winner (OR 2.46; 95% CI 1.37–4.40), having a lower age (OR 0.70; 95% CI 0.52–0.93) and reporting less pain (OR 0.85; 95% CI 0.73–0.99) all measured at cohort entry. This study shows that psycho-social aspects of health and work in combination with economic aspects have a significantly larger impact on return-to-work when compared to relatively more physical aspects of disability and physical requirements of the job. This suggests that interventions aimed at return-to-work of employees sicklisted with LBP should predominantly be focused on these psycho-social aspects such as health behavior and job satisfaction, and on the (lack of) economic incentives for return-to-work.