Article

Normative values for a functional capacity evaluation. OBJECTIVE: To
establish normative values for a functional capacity evaluation (FCE) of healthy
working subjects. DESIGN: Descriptive. SETTING: Rehabilitation center.
PARTICIPANTS: Healthy working subjects (N=701; 448 men, 253 women) between 20 and
60 years of age, working in more than 180 occupations. INTERVENTIONS: Subjects
performed a 2-hour FCE consisting of 12 work-related tests. Subjects were
classified into categories based on physical demands according to the Dictionary
of Occupational Titles. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Means, ranges, SDs, and
percentiles were provided for normative values of FCE, and a regression analysis
for outcome of the 12 tests was performed. RESULTS: Normative FCE values were
established for 4 physical demand categories. CONCLUSIONS: The normative values
enable comparison of patients' performances to these values. If a patient's
performance exceeds the lowest scores in his/her corresponding demand category,
then the patient's capacity is very likely to be sufficient to meet the workload.
Further, clinicians can make more precise return-to-work recommendations and set
goals for rehabilitation programs. A comparison of the normative values can be
useful to the fields of rehabilitation, occupational, and insurance medicine.
Further research is needed to test the validity of the normative values with
respect to workplace assessments and return-to-work recommendations.

Langue : ANGLAIS