The Impact of Chronic Conditions on Productivity-Adjusted Life-Years in Both the Workplace and Household Settings in the General Adult Population in Finland

Objectives This study aimed to quantify the burden of 8 noncommunicable conditions on productivity-adjusted life-years (PALYs) at work and within the household among the Finnish general adult population. Methods Survey data on 18- to 79-year-old Finnish respondents collected in 2022 were used to calculate age- and sex-specific productivity indices at work and within the household using 0- and 1-inflated beta regression for individuals with and without a certain condition (asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cardiovascular disease, depression or other mental health problem, diabetes, gastrointestinal disease, hypothyroidism or other thyroid disease, migraine or other chronic headache, and musculoskeletal disease). Age and sex distributions of the Finnish population obtained from Statistics Finland together with the prevalence of the condition and the estimated productivity indices were used to produce the population-level 1-year losses in PALYs at work and within the household. Results Among 8 conditions, depression and other mental health problems had the highest PALY losses (99 570 PALY loss burden at work, 256 086 PALY loss at home, and 250 980 PALY loss in general adult populations), with diabetes having the lowest (3666 PALY loss burden at work, 46 344 PALY loss at home, and 43 443 PALY loss in general adult populations). All the examined conditions were as significant in affecting both the productivity at work and the within-household productivity. Conclusions Depression and other mental health problems have a major effect on self-reported work ability and productivity compared with other chronic conditions.