Return to work following mild traumatic brain injury.

OBJECTIVE To examine factors relating to return to work (RTW) following mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). PARTICIPANTS One hundred and nine patients (Age: M = 37.4 years, SD = 13.2; 52.3% women) who sustained an mTBI. DESIGN Inception cohort design with questionnaires and neuropsychological testing completed approximately 3 to 4 weeks postinjury. SETTING Emergency Department of Tampere University Hospital, Finland. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Self-report (postconcussion symptoms, depression, fatigue, and general health) and neurocognitive measures (attention and memory). RESULTS The cumulative RTW rates were as follows: 1 week = 46.8%, 2 weeks = 59.6%, 3 weeks = 67.0%, 4 weeks = 70.6%, 2 months = 91.7%, and 1 year = 97.2%. Four variables were significant predictors of the number of days to RTW: age, multiple bodily injuries, intracranial abnormality at the day of injury, and fatigue ratings (all P < .001). The largest amount of variance accounted for by these variables in the prediction of RTW was at 30 days following injury (P < .001, R = 0.504). Participants who returned to work fewer than 30 days after injury (n = 82, 75.2%) versus more than 30 days (n = 27, 24.8%) did not differ on demographic or neuropsychological variables. CONCLUSIONS The vast majority of this cohort returned to work within 2 months. Predictors of slower RTW included age, multiple bodily injuries, intracranial abnormality at the day of injury, and fatigue.