Translation into Brazilian Portuguese, cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Stanford presenteeism scale-6 and work instability scale for ankylosing spondylitis.

Loss of productivity at work, as a result of health problems, is becoming an issue of interest due to the high burden it represents in society. The measurement of such phenomenon can be made using generic and specific scales for certain diseases such as the Stanford Presenteeism Scale (SPS-6) and the Work Instability Scale for Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS-WIS), specific for patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS). The aim of this study was to translate and perform a cross-cultural adaptation of SPS-6 and AS-WIS into Portuguese and check their psychometric properties. The study also aimed to evaluate the relationship between the general scores of the scales and the main sociodemographic and clinical data, lifestyles, and absenteeism in patients with AS and correlate these variables with SPS-6 and AS-WIS scales. A sample of 120 patients with AS and 80 workers at a university hospital was evaluated. The processes for the translation and cross-cultural adaptation of the instruments followed preestablished steps and rules presented in the literature. For the evaluation of measurement properties and correlations between scales, intra-class correlation coefficient (reproducibility analysis), Cronbach alpha (internal consistency), and Pearson correlation coefficient (validity) were employed. The inter-observer (0.986) and intra-observer (0.992) reproducibilities of the AS-WIS were shown to be high as well as the internal consistency (0.995). Similarly, the inter-observer reliability of SPS-6 was considered good (0.890), although it showed a poorer performance when considering the same observer (Pearson correlation coefficient = 0.675 and intra-class correlation = 0.656). Internal consistency, for the total number of items, as measured by Cronbach alpha, was 0.889. The validity of the scales was evaluated thru the comparison of the achieved scores with the results of the WLQ, SF-36, ASQoL, BASFI, BASDAI, HAQ-S, and SRQ-20 instruments. Correlations between loss of productivity at work, worse quality of life, presence of emotional disturbances, and worse health conditions were positive. The process of translation, cross-cultural adaptation, and validation of the SPS-6 as a generic measurement for the loss of productivity at work and of the AS-WIS as a specific measurement for patients with AS are valid, reproducible, and specific instruments to be used in Brazil. In both scales, productivity at work was associated to advanced age, higher rate of absenteeism in the last month and year, presence of peripheral arthritis, and a larger number of comorbidities in patients with AS. The AS-WIS and SPS-6 showed a good correlation among them although they are not mutually exclusive but supplementary.

Variables related to work productivity loss in patients with ankylosing spondylitis.

The work productivity loss due to ankylosing spondylitis (AS) has become subject of interest because of its socioeconomic impact. In addition to physical limitations, other variables seem to affect the productivity of those patients, who often withdraw early from the labor force. This review was aimed at identifying articles published in English, from January 2001 to December 2011, which assessed those variables in adult patients of both sexes diagnosed with AS, using standardized instruments to measure disease activity and work productivity. Thirty-three articles meeting the inclusion criteria were identified. The work productivity loss of patients with AS proved to be influenced by demographics, emotional, social, cultural, and occupational factors, and lifestyle. Understanding those potential risk factors may contribute to the development of preventive strategies to maintain patients with AS participating in the labor force.

Variáveis relacionadas com perda da produtividade no trabalho em pacientes com espondilite anquilosante / Variables related to work productivity loss in patients with ankylosing spondylitis

A perda da produtividade no trabalho, como resultado da espondilite anquilosante, tem se tornado tema de interesse dado o seu impacto socioeconômico. Além das limitações físicas, outras variáveis parecem interferir na produtividade desses pacientes que muitas vezes são aposentados precocemente do mercado de trabalho. Assim, esse manuscrito de revisão buscou identificar artigos publicados na língua inglesa no período de janeiro de 2001 a dezembro de 2011 que discutissem essas variáveis por meio de estudos realizados com pacientes adultos com diagnóstico de espondilite anquilosante, de ambos os gêneros e que usaram instrumentos padronizados para a avaliação da atividade da doença e da capacidade produtiva no trabalho. Foram identificados 33 artigos atendendo aos critérios de inclusão e observou-se que a perda de produtividade no trabalho em pacientes com espondilite anquilosante é influenciada por variáveis demográficas, emocionais, socioculturais e ocupacionais e hábitos de vida. Compreender esses possíveis fatores de risco pode colaborar para a elaboração de estratégias preventivas para a manutenção de pacientes com espondilite anquilosante no mercado de trabalho.

The work productivity loss due to ankylosing spondylitis (AS) has become subject of interest because of its socioeconomic impact. In addition to physical limitations, other variables seem to affect the productivity of those patients, who often withdraw early from the labor force. This review was aimed at identifying articles published in English, from January 2001 to December 2011, which assessed those variables in adult patients of both sexes diagnosed with AS, using standardized instruments to measure disease activity and work productivity. Thirty-three articles meeting the inclusion criteria were identified. The work productivity loss of patients with AS proved to be influenced by demographics, emotional, social, cultural, and occupational factors, and lifestyle. Understanding those potential risk factors may contribute to the development of preventive strategies to maintain patients with AS participating in the labor force.