Hand characteristics and functional abilities in predicting return to work in adult workers with traumatic hand injury.

Background: Hand injuries affect a person's functioning, thus impeding their abilities to return to work. There is a limited understanding in return to work of the overall predictors when including hand characteristics and functional abilities. Therefore, it is essential to identify the most relevant predictors in return to work among individuals with a hand injury.

Objectives: (1) To compare hand function characteristics and functional abilities of injured workers who have or have not returned to work. (2) To estimate hand function characteristics and functional abilities as predictors to return to work.

Methods: One hundred and fifteen adult workers with hand injuries aged 18- 59 years old from five general hospitals in Malaysia participated in a cross-sectional study. Predictors were estimated using logistic regression.

Results: There was a significant association between occupational sector (p = 0.012), injury duration (p = 0.024), occupational performance (p = 0.009) and satisfaction with performance (p < 0.001), grip strength of injured hand (p = 0.045- 0.002) and the Disability of Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) disability/symptom (p = 0.001) with the person's return to work status. Significant predictors of return to work were identified using the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM) satisfaction's score, DASH disability/symptoms' score and duration of the injury.

Conclusion: As two main predictors of return to work were COPM satisfaction and DASH disability/symptoms, occupational therapists working in rehabilitation should focus on achieving functional performance and satisfaction within the optimal time.