Most of the prior research on absence from work after a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) was of a small sample size and had a limited number of follow-up assessments.

Therefore, this study investigated the prevalence of absence from work, trajectories, and associated factors in the 12 months following mTBI in Europe.

Data from a European cohort (CENTER-TBI) were used. Absence from work was assessed at 2 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months after mTBI. Associated factors included sociodemographic factors, current psychoactive substance use, pre-injury medical history, injury-related factors, medical care, complications, and discharge, and 2-week follow-up questionnaires. Inferential analyses relied on generalized estimating equations.

This study included 1080 adults with mTBI who were working at the time of the injury (median [IQR] age, 46.0 [23.0] years; 69 % men). Absence from work decreased from 32 % at 2 weeks to 20 % at 12 months after the injury (P < 0.001). Around 76 % of adults returned to work within the first 3 months, whereas > 43 % of those absent from work at 3 months remained absent at 12 months. The 3 factors with the strongest association with absence from work were admission to hospital wards (OR = 2.57) or intensive care units (OR = 4.76), the presence of a pre-injury psychiatric disorder (OR = 2.55), and older age (OR = 1.61).

One-fifth of workers with mTBI were absent from work 12 months after the injury. Early identification of those at particular risk for not returning to work should be a clinical priority.