A cross-sectional research on female workers examining the loss of productivity caused by mild, moderate and severe fibromyalgia

Objectives: To assess (a) the impacts of fibromyalgia (FM) symptoms on patients' ability to work and (b) the relationship between FM severity states and lost productivity from the perspective of patients. Methods: FM female patients were retrospectively evaluated for this cross-sectional study. FM severity was determined using the revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQR). Work Productivity and Activity Impairment-Fibromyalgia (WPAI-FM) was used to evaluate patients' employment status. Differences across FM severity states were evaluated using the one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and chi-square or Fisher's exact test. The Pearson's r test was performed for the correlation analysis. Results: The study included 209 subjects, 64 (30.6%) had mild, 64 (30.6%) had moderate, and 81 (38.8%) had severe FM; 57.9% were working full-time, and 42.1% were working part-time. According to WPAI-FM the work productivity and activity impairment resulted: absenteeism 7.03%; presenteeism 44.35%; activity impairment 47.24%; overall work productivity loss 58.23%. Disease severity was associated with decreased work productivity. Presenteeism, overall work productivity loss, and activity impairment demonstrated significant correlations with FIQR and PainDETECT Questionnaire. Conclusions: FM severity is associated to a reduced job productivity. Early identification and treatment of FM may provide a window of opportunity for job preservation.