Clinical characteristics and sick leave associated with infectious mononucleosis in a real-world setting in Germany.

Abstract

Infectious mononucleosis (IM), mainly caused by the Epstein-Barr virus, can result in prolonged symptoms. The objective of this study was to look at the length of sick leave, diagnosis of IM, treatment and comorbidities in a real-world setting in Germany. This retrospective, cross-sectional study used electronic medical record data from office-based practices in Germany and included patients with an initial confirmed diagnosis of IM between the 1 January 1 2016 and December 31 2018. Patients of working age (18-65years) with statutory health insurance were included in order to look at the working population who would need a sick note for their employers in case of illness. Epstein-Barr virus was the most common cause of IM in this population of 1,596 patients with an average age of 32years. The majority of patients were women in all cohorts (~60%). Although CFS, myocarditis and thrombocytopenia were not recorded frequently around the index date, the occurrence did increase during the follow-up period. Around half of patients received antibiotics. About 62% of all patients were on sick leave for an average of 20 calendar days around the time of their IM diagnosis. Only 1% were still on sick leave after 6months. A small percentage of patients remained on continuous sick leave after 6months, suggesting that the long-term effect of IM on the ability to work was minor in our cohort. However, patients could still be experiencing symptoms that influence their quality of life.