[Evaluating the effectiveness of ambulatory orthopedic/traumatologic rehabilitation]

At the request of the association of the Landesverband der Betriebskrankenkassen (BKK) Nordrhein-Westfalen (association of company-health-insurance funds of North Rhine-Westphalia) a first study was carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of ambulatory orthopedic-traumatological rehabilitation (AOTR). 21 ambulatory rehabilitation institutes were involved. Motor and psychosocial parameters of 543 patients were evaluated before the beginning of the treatment, immediately after it and 4 months after the end of treatment. On average, patients had 22 treatment units. A wide variety of orthopedic indications was recorded. The AOTR proved a positive effect on all indications, which was shown by an improvement of all measured parameters. Major problems were caused by extensive basic and organizational prerequisites, which led to immediate suggestions for improvement which will be described.