PGI20 THE IMPACT OF ULCERATIVE COLITIS ON WORK PRODUCTIVITY: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW

Abstract

Ulcerative Colitis (UC) is a chronic and potentially debilitating disease which impacts work productivity and associated indirect costs. This analysis assessed the impact of UC on absenteeism, presenteeism, and sick leave as well as indirect costs of lost work productivity. The aim of this study is to identify existing literature on work productivity in UC and summarize data with descriptive statistics. We performed a literature review of peer-reviewed journal articles using the PubMed/Medline database. Search terms included ulcerative colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, absenteeism, presenteeism, productivity, cost of illness, and indirect costs. Articles were included if they were published in the last 15 years and included any of the following work productivity outcomes: absenteeism, presenteeism, sick leave, and total indirect costs. Included studies were scanned, data extracted and the data were characterized using descriptive statistics. We identified 251 articles, eleven (15,572 patients) of which were included in this analysis. Studies were published between 2004 and 2019. The studies were from more that eight countries including three from the United States. Seven studies reported outcomes on the hours per year of work missed and which averaged 93.7 hours. Five studies reported outcomes on hours per year of impaired working hours and which averaged 503.8 hours. Three studies reported outcomes on hours per year of sick leave and which averaged 151.2. Overall, the indirect impact of UC on work productivity amounted to an annual cost of $8,816.06 per patient per year. UC exhibits a measurable impact on work productivity due to work time missed, impairment while working, and sick leave, leading to indirect financial costs.