Early occupational health management of XXXX with @entity615 : a randomized controlled trial.

@entity1 @entity615 @entity1643 @entity158
STUDY DESIGN: A randomized controlled trial in occupational health practice was conducted. OBJECTIVE: To study the efficacy of early management of workers with @entity1643 by occupational physicians, as compared with management by the supervisor only. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Health care and university workers with @entity615 and on sick leave for less than 1 month were included in the study. METHODS: @entity1 with @entity1643 for at least 10 days on sick leave were randomly assigned to early management by the occupational physician (n = 61) or to a reference group with management by the worker's supervisor during the first 3 months of sick leave (n = 59). The @entity1 were observed for 1 year and compared in terms of time until return to work, @entity158 intensity, functional disability, and general health perception. The occupational physicians were provided with management guidelines. RESULTS: No significant differences were found after 3 and 12 months of follow-up evaluation in terms of time until return to work (hazard ratio, 1.3; 95% CI, 0.90-1.90) or in terms of other health outcomes. Recurrences, however, occurred more frequently in the intervention group, but the total duration of sick leave in 1 year did not differ between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: The findings do not show a significant positive effect of an early intervention by occupational physicians on workers with @entity1643 . This might reflect the early phase of disability or the low intensity of the intervention resulting from overestimation of the physicians' compliance with the guidelines.
