[The main illnesses causing absence from work. Analysis of the INPS data bank]

Understanding the reasons which underlie absence from work due to illness can allow us to prevent harmful events, either in private life or professional activity, which represent a risk for the health of workers and can reduce their personal and professional capacities.

To describe the frequency of illness in a population of workers employed by the Marche region, showing: the most common pathological events, their length and the differences in occurrence linked to gender and age of the workers.

We analyzed the Marche Region INPS data bank regarding medical certificates presented by workers for the years 1999 and 2000. These medical certificates were registered by the Institute according to the nosological code (ICD-9-CM classification), length of illness, gender and age of workers.

The incidence of illness in the specified two years decreases in the second year of observation passing from 0.67 to 0.64. The number of certificates for the two years is similar for males but increases significantly for females ((p < 0.001). In general the most frequent illnesses were infectious or parasitical ones (31%), followed by those affecting the respiratory apparatus (17%). Compared to women, men presented a higher risk for: burns, traumas and poisoning (OR 1.92 IC 1.81-2.03) and diseases of the cardio-circulatory apparatus (OR 1.75 IC 1.55-1.97). Regarding length of absence, the most common was between 4 and 7 days, even though a reversal of tendency was registered in 2000 with a decrease in short and very short absences from work in favour of average and long ones. The older workers, those over 40 years of age, tend to produce fewer certificates compared to their younger colleagues, but of longer absence. The highest number of days off work can be found among the older workers.

According to the data we analyzed, absence from work due to illness is a complex phenomenon regarding not only gender differences but also the age of workers and the kind of work they perform.