title: Sickness absence from work among persons with new physician-diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome: a population-based matched-cohort study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Carpal tunnel syndrome is common among employed persons. Data on sickness absence from work in relation to carpal tunnel syndrome have been usually based on self-report and derived from clinical or occupational populations. We aimed to determine sickness absence among persons with physician-diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome as compared to the general population.
  
  
  METHODS
  In Skåne region in Sweden we identified all subjects, aged 17-57 years, with new physician-made diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome during 5 years (2004-2008). For each subject we randomly sampled, from the general population, 4 matched reference subjects without carpal tunnel syndrome; the two cohorts comprised 5456 and 21,667 subjects, respectively (73% women; mean age 43 years). We retrieved social insurance register data on all sickness absence periods longer than 2 weeks from 12 months before to 24 months after diagnosis. Of those with carpal tunnel syndrome 2111 women (53%) and 710 men (48%) underwent surgery within 24 months of diagnosis. We compared all-cause sickness absence and analyzed sickness absence in conjunction with diagnosis and surgery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean number of all-cause sickness absence days per each 30-day period from 12 months before to 24 months after diagnosis was significantly higher in the carpal tunnel syndrome than in the reference cohort. A new sickness absence period longer than 2 weeks in conjunction with diagnosis was recorded in 12% of the women (n = 492) and 11% of the men (n = 170) and with surgery in 53% (n = 1121) and 58% (n = 408) of the surgically treated, respectively; median duration in conjunction with surgery was 35 days (IQR 27-45) for women and 41 days (IQR 28-50) for men.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Persons with physician-diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome have substantially more sickness absence from work than age and sex-matched persons from the general population from 1 year before to 2 years after diagnosis. Gender differences were small.
authors: Orthopedics, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, Lund, Sweden; Department of Orthopedics Hässleholm-Kristianstad, Hässleholm Hospital, Hässleholm, Sweden.
authors: Isam
authors: I
authors: Atroshi
authors: Orthopedics, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
authors: Caddie
authors: C
authors: Zhou
authors: Orthopedics, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, Lund, Sweden; Epidemiology and Register Centre South, Skåne University Hospital Lund, Lund, Sweden; Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
authors: Anna
authors: A
authors: Jöud
authors: Orthopedics, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, Lund, Sweden; Epidemiology and Register Centre South, Skåne University Hospital Lund, Lund, Sweden.
authors: Ingemar F
authors: IF
authors: Petersson
authors: Orthopedics, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, Lund, Sweden; Epidemiology and Register Centre South, Skåne University Hospital Lund, Lund, Sweden; Clinical Epidemiology Research & Training Unit, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America.
authors: Martin
authors: M
authors: Englund
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002349:Carpal Tunnel Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000601:surgery; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010820:Physicians; D012737:Sex Factors; D018582:Sick Leave / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult