Integration of occupation based intervention in hand injury rehabilitation: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Study designRandomized Controlled Trial (RCT).IntroductionEngagement in daily occupations and day to day activities helps to restore function in individuals with injured hands and provides a platform to practise selected occupations.PurposeThe purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a combination of Occupation Based Intervention (OBI) and Therapeutic Exercise (TE) compared to TE alone for the rehabilitation of hand injuries.MethodA single center RCT, parallel group was conducted at the Kuala Lumpur General Hospital (KLGH), Malaysia. Forty-six adult clients with hand injuries who consented to participate were randomly allocated to either the OBI + TE group or to the TE group.ResultsFollowing a ten week intervention program, statistical significance differences were found in DASH score (TE = 18.64 ± 14.84 vs OBI + TE = 9.50 ± 9.14, p = 0.02); total active motion (TE = 1035.85 ± 179.84 vs OBI + TE = 1203.65 ± 133.60, p = 0.01); neuropathic pain (TE = 2.90 ± 2.79 vs OBI + TE = 1.05 ± 2.01, p = 0.02); COPM performance (TE = 7.62 ± 2.03 vs OBI + TE = 9.53 ± 0.64, p < 0.001); and COPM satisfaction (TE = 7.60 ± 2.11 vs OBI + TE = 9.49 ± 0.76, p < 0.001) in favor of OBI + TE group.ConclusionThis study highlighted the integration of OBI into hand injury rehabilitation improved outcomes for clients.Level of evidence1b.