Article

The purpose of this study was to determine if time to claim closure was
similar to time to self-reported recovery in a no fault motor vehicle collision
insurance system. METHOD:
A prospective cohort of traffic injured adults with a
whiplash-associated disorder (WAD) was assembled. We excluded participants who
applied for benefits after 42 days of the collision, who were in hospital for
more than two days and participants who were not followed up at least once after
their injury. Questionnaires were completed at baseline, six weeks, three-, six-,
nine- and 12-months after the collision. RESULTS: The mean age of the cohort was
39 years and 66% were female. The mean number of days until claim closure and for
self-reported recovery was 291days and 134 days, respectively. We found those who
had their claim closed at each follow-up period had lower levels of disability
and were more likely to report they were recovered than participants with open
claims. CONCLUSION: We conclude that time to claim closure could be used as an
outcome measure in traffic collision; however, this measure should be used with
caution since it over-estimates the true time to recovery. Implications for
Rehabilitation Time to claim closure as an outcome measure for
whiplash-associated disorders has been criticized in the literature because it is
thought that closure is not reflective of the health status of the individual. We
found that claim closure was associated with lower levels of disability, but the
time to claim closure was significantly longer than the time to self-reported
recovery. Time to claim closure may be used with caution as a "proxy" measure of
recovery from an injury; however, it must be noted that it over-estimates the
true time of recovery.

Langue : ANGLAIS