Do Short-Term Improvements in Activities of Daily Living and
Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Have Association With Return
to Work in Workers With Occupational Injury? From an Occupational
Injury Cohort in Taiwan

Do Short-Term Improvements in Activities of Daily Living and
Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Have Association With Return
to Work in Workers With Occupational Injury? From an Occupational
Injury Cohort in Taiwan

Activities of daily living (ADL)
Instrumental activities of daily living (IADL)
Occupational injury
Return to work (RTW)

Rates of return to work (RTW) after an occupational injury vary considerably according to a
range of factors. Limited studies have been conducted on the specific correlation between RTW and
functional assessments, including activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living
(IADL). This prospective cohort study aims to determine if a relationship exists between ADL/IADL and
RTW among injured workers in Taiwan.
Methods: We recruited 162 workers who reported work-related injuries from January 2023 to May 2024.
The assessment of ADL was evaluated using the Barthel Index, whereas IADL was evaluated using the
Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living scale. ADL/IADL were assessed immediately after the
injury, at 3 and 6 months postinjury. Logistic regression models were used for the connections between
ADL, IADL, and RTW while considering various confounding factors.
Results: The mean ADL and IADL improved significantly at both 3 and 6 months postinjury. Logistic
regression analysis indicated that IADL scores at 3 and 6 months postinjury were significantly linked to
RTW. ADL scores lost significance after adjustment. Age was negatively associated with RTW, whereas
sex and labor insurance status showed no significant association.
Conclusion: Short-term improvements in IADL are linked to successful RTW, rather than ADL for occupationally injured workers. Evaluations of IADL should be incorporated into rehabilitation plans to
predict and improve RTW. Thorough rehabilitation approaches that address various aspects of functional
abilities may be crucial to support successful RTW. Further studies are required to validate these results

Fa-Chen Lin 1,2
, Chia-Pin Lin 1
, Hung-Yi Chuang 3,4
, Tse-Wei Wu 1,5
, Peng-Ju Huang 6
,
Chen-Cheng Yang 1,3,*, Chao-Hung Kuo 7

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1Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Kaohsiung Municipal Siaogang Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
2Department of Medical Education and Research, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
3Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
4Department of Public Health and Environmental Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
5Department of Medical Education, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
6Department of Orthopaedic, Kaohsiung Municipal Siaogang Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
7Department of Internal Medicine, Kaohsiung Municipal Siaogang Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan

3 January 2025

FAJAR BAGUS W

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