ArticleBMC medicine2023
Return to work and health-related quality of life up to 1 year in patients hospitalized for COVID-19: the CO-FLOW study.
Article in BMC medicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.
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Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed.
- The impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection on work participation, sickness absence and general practitioner consultations in the Danish population - a register-based matched cohort study.BMC public health · 2026Article
- The Influence of Different Kidney Replacement Modalities on Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with ESKD.Kidney360 · 2025Article
- Trajectories of device-assessed physical activity and sleep in ICU- and non-ICU-treated patients up to 2 years after hospitalization for COVID-19, and their association with health-related quality of life.Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation · 2025Article
- The 1-Year Functional Recovery From Severe COVID-19 in a Swedish Working-Age Cohort.Acta anaesthesiologica Scandinavica · 2025Article
- A Longitudinal Description of the Health-Related Quality of Life Among Individuals at High Risk After SARS-CoV-2 Infection: A Dutch Multicenter Observational Cohort Study.Open forum infectious diseases · 2025Article
- COVID-19 infection and later risk of sickness absence by socioeconomic status: a cohort study.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Long-term health outcomes of COVID-19 in ICU- and non-ICU-treated patients up to 2 years after hospitalization: a longitudinal cohort study (CO-FLOW).Journal of intensive care · 2024Article
- Long-term course and factors influencing work ability and return to work in post-COVID patients 12 months after inpatient rehabilitation.Journal of occupational medicine and toxicology (London, England) · 2024Article
- Neuropsychiatric and work outcomes after COVID-19 hospitalisation.The lancet. Psychiatry · 2024Article
- Psychiatric Symptoms, Treatment Uptake, and Barriers to Mental Health Care Among US Adults With Post-COVID-19 Condition.JAMA network open · 2024Article
- Daily Functional Characteristics and Health Among Older Adults During COVID-19: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach.Inquiry : a journal of medical care organization, provision and financingArticle
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10 authors.
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No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCurrently, evidence about the long-term consequences of COVID-19 on return to work and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is limited. We evaluated return to work and its associations with baseline characteristics and physical and mental recovery over time in patients up to 1 year after hospitalization for COVID-19. Secondly, we aimed to evaluate the association between return to work and health-related quality of life (HRQoL).
methodsCO-FLOW, a multicenter prospective cohort study, enrolled adult participants hospitalized for COVID-19, aged ≥ 18 years within 6 months after hospital discharge. Return to work and HRQoL were collected at 3, 6, and 12 months after hospital discharge using the iMTA Productivity Cost Questionnaire and the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey, respectively. Data were collected between July 1, 2020, and September 1, 2022. Generalized estimating equations with repeated measurements were used to assess outcomes over time.
resultsIn the CO-FLOW study, 371 participants were employed pre-hospitalization. At 3, 6, and 12 months post-discharge, 50% (170/342), 29% (92/317), and 15% (44/295) of participants had not returned to work, and 21% (71/342), 21% (65/317), and 16% (48/295) only partially, respectively. ICU admission (adjusted odds ratio (95% confidence interval): 0.17 (0.10 to 0.30), p < 0.001), persistent fatigue (0.93 (0.90 to 0.97), p < 0.001), female sex (0.57 (0.36 to 0.90), p = 0.017), and older age (0.96 (0.93 to 0.98), p < 0.001) were independently associated with no return to work. ICU patients required a longer time to return to work than non-ICU patients. Patients who did not return or partially returned to work reported lower scores on all domains of HRQoL than those who fully returned.
conclusionsOne year after hospitalization for COVID-19, only 69% of patients fully returned to work, whereas 15% did not return and 16% partially returned to work. No or partial return to work was associated with reduced HRQoL. This study suggests that long-term vocational support might be needed to facilitate return to work.
trial registrationWorld Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform NL8710.
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