title: Returning to work after a unilateral hand fracture.
abstract: We complied a case series involving 556 employed patients who sustained unilateral hand fractures requiring open reduction and internal fixation and a modification of their normal work activities and schedules. Time from injury to limited duty averaged 5 days, with 62% of the patients returning to work 1 day after surgery. Time from injury to resuming regular duty averaged 56 days. Both sexes averaged a return to work on limited duty after 5 days, but women returned to regular duty an average 5 days later than men. Patients with workers' compensation injuries, joint fractures, multiple fractures, tendon and/or nerve disruptions, and fractures requiring metal fixation rather than periosteal sutures required longer periods on off-duty and limited-duty statuses.
authors.affiliation: University of Louisville School of Medicine, KY.
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Kasdan
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: June
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D005383:Finger Injuries / Q000534:rehabilitation; D005593:Fracture Fixation, Internal; D017102:Fracture Healing / Q000502:physiology; D050723:Fractures, Bone / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006230:Hand Injuries / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012050:Rehabilitation, Vocational