School absence in children with fractures: is it unnecessary school regulations that keep children away from school?

Abstract

We retrospectively reviewed school absence in 142 consecutive children aged 5-16 years who attended our clinic following upper or lower limb fractures that required hospital admission. A questionnaire was sent to all parents and the head teachers of the involved schools requesting details of their return to school policy following trauma. One hundred and forty-two children had fractures in the study period. One hundred and four parent questionnaires were completed. All 29 head teachers' responded. Children lost an average of 4 and 21 school days, respectively as a result of upper and lower limb fractures. Parents 92 or child 7 made the decision to return to school, this totals 95%. We concluded that school regulations rarely delay a child's return to school after a fracture.