The impact of atopic dermatitis on work life - a systematic review

Atopic dermatitis (AD) has considerable multidimensional personal and societal costs. However, the extend to which the patient's work life is affected due to AD is more sparsely described in the literature. The objective of this review was to examine the impact on work life for patients with AD, with a specific focus on choice of education and occupation, sick leave, social compensations and change of job due to AD. A systematic literature search was performed in PubMed, EMBASE and Web og Science up to 7 February 2017 for articles on the impact on work life for patients with AD. Results were summarized taking several measures of study quality into account. The search identified twenty-three articles, whereof five studies assessed the influence of AD on educational or job choice, without any consistent conslusion, while eight of nine studies with respect to sick leave and two on disability pensions found AD to have a negative impact. Studies of change or loss of job and AD showed more diverse results, as not all studies documented a negative effect of AD on work life. Atopic dermatitis imposes a burden extending beyond personal, emotional and financial costs. This review strongly implies that AD affects sick leave, and though not fully clarified, possible also job choice, change or loss of job and even disability pensions for the more severe cases.