Factors Determining Not Returning to Full-Time Work 12 Months After Mild Ischemic Stroke.
Georgios Vlachos, Hege Ihle-Hansen, Torgeir Bruun Wyller and 4 others
PMID 36968174WHAT IT FOUND
Among mild stroke survivors, persistent functional limitation and diabetes were linked to not returning to full-time work.
Anxiety, depression, and fatigue appeared associated only before adjusting for other factors, so their independent role remains unclear.
Key findings
01Low functional status at 12 months, defined as a modified Rankin Scale score greater than 1, was significantly associated with not returning to full-time work in adjusted models.
02Diabetes mellitus showed a borderline significant association with not returning to full-time work in adjusted models (P=.052).
03Female sex, higher anxiety, depression, and fatigue scores were associated with not returning to full-time work in unadjusted analyses but not in adjusted models.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
Only 20% of participants were female, limiting generalizability regarding sex differences. The study was underpowered to detect small effects, particularly for rare outcomes or subgroups. Socioeconomic factors such as income, profession, and employer support were not recorded, which are known influences on return to work. Attrition was low, but 6 patients did not attend follow-up. The study design is observational and cannot prove causation.
Declared interests
No specific funding sources or conflicts of interest were detailed in the provided text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that anxiety, depression, and fatigue are irrelevant to return-to-work outcomes. They were significantly associated in unadjusted analyses, and their lack of significance in adjusted models may reflect collinearity with functional status or limited statistical power, rather than an absence of clinical impact.