Loss of Parental Workforce in Paediatric Fractures

Childhood fractures are frequently encountered in orthopaedic practice. 40-64% of boys and 25-40% of girls have at least one fracture by the age of 16. Children, who are more fragile than adults, usually require additional care support during the treatment process. Labour force statistics have determined that one third of the loss of labour force occurs after musculoskeletal injuries.

When the literature is examined, there are many studies investigating loss of labour force after fractures. It was found that 20% of the patients never returned to work after distal radius fracture and the average loss of labour force was 9.2 weeks. In another study, while the return to work period was 60 days in minor hand injuries, it was reported that the return to work could increase to 360 days in major hand injuries. In another study, the average return to work time in patients aged >50 years with fragility fractures was found to be 20.5 days. The rate of return to work after traumatic spinal fracture was found to be only 38.1%.

In daily practice, the investigators observe that parents frequently do not go to work for child care after child fractures. However, there is no similar study investigating this loss of labour force after pediatric fractures in the literature. In this study, the investigators aimed to investigate the loss of parental labour force (LWL) in conservatively followed pediatric fractures