Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2007:27:121-7.

Functional capacity evaluation & disability

Joseph J Chen  1
Affiliations

Functional capacity evaluation & disability

Joseph J Chen. Iowa Orthop J. 2007.

Abstract

Function, Impairment, and Disability are words in which many physicians have little interest. Most physicians are trained to deal with structure and physiology and not function and disability. The purpose of this article is to address some of the common questions that many physicians have with the use of functional capacity evaluation and disability and also to provide a unifying model that can explain the medical and societal variables in predicting disability. We will first define the functional capacity evaluation (FCE) and explore the different types available as well as their uses. We will review several studies exploring the validity and reliability of the FCE on healthy and chronic pain patients. We will examine the few studies that look into whether an FCE is predictive of return to work and whether an FCE is predictive of disability. In the second half of this article, we will focus on the Assessment of Disability from the origins of the United States Social Security Administration to a bold new concept, the World Health Organization's International Classification of Function, Disability and Health.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Individual v. Social Models of Disability.
Figure 2
Figure 2
ICF Model for Blindness.
Figure 3
Figure 3
ICF Model for Children with Spina Bifida.
Figure 4
Figure 4
ICF Model from Wittink.
Figure 5
Figure 5
ICF Model of Disabling Back Pain.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Gouttebarge V, Wind H, Paul P, Kuijer FM, Frings-Dresen Reliability and validity of functional capacity evaluation methods: a systematic review with reference to Blankenship system Ergos work simulator, Ergo-kit, and Isernhagen work system. Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 2004;77:527–537. - PubMed
    1. Reneman MF, Brouwer S, Meinema A, Dijkstra PU, Geertzen JHB, Groothoof JW. Test-Retest Reliability of the Isernhagen Work Systems Functional Capacity Evaluation in Adults. J. Occupational Rehabilitation. 2004;14(4):295–305. December. - PubMed
    1. Brouwer S, Reneman MF, Dijkstra PU, Groothoff JW, Schellekens JMH, Goeken LNH. Test-Retest Reliability of the Isernhagen Work Systems Functional Capacity Evaluation in Patients with Chronic Low Back Pain. J. Occupational Rehabilitaion. 2003;13(4):207–218. December. - PubMed
    1. Gross DP, Battle MC, Cassidy JD. "The Prognostic Value of Functional Capacity Evaluation in Patients with Chronic Low Back Pain: Part 1: Timely Return to Work. Spine. 2004;29(8):914–919. - PubMed
    1. Gross DP, Battle MC. The Prognostic Value of Functional Capacity Evaluation in Patients with Chronic Low Back Pain: Part 2: Sustained Recovery. Spine. 2004;29(8):920–4. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources