bims-cieche Biomed News
on Cost-of-illness and economic evaluation in occupational health & safety
Issue of 2025–10–26
two papers selected by
Jonas Stefaan Steel, IDEWE
  1. Understanding the Burden of Mental Illness Induced by Workplace Mobbing: A Scoping Review.
  2. Global, regional, and national disease burden of pneumoconiosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, tracheal-bronchus-and-lung cancer, and asthma attributable to occupational risks, 1990-2021: a systematic analysis for the global burden of disease study 2021.
  1. Actas Esp Psiquiatr. 2025 Aug;53(5): 1104-1121
    Understanding the Burden of Mental Illness Induced by Workplace Mobbing: A Scoping Review.
    Hernan G Rincon-Hoyos, Roger Figueroa-Paz, María Mercedes Cardozo-Rengifo, Daniela Gil-González, Juan F Zúñiga-Martinez, Oriana Arias-Valderrama, Andrés Gempeler.
       BACKGROUND: Workplace mobbing affects approximately 20% of workers worldwide, yet about 70% of victims do not report it, limiting the full understanding of its true impact. While previous research has established its association with mental health disorders, the broader burden-including burden of disease (BOD), cost of illness (COI), and productivity loss (PL)-remains underexplored. This scoping review aims to address this gap by mapping the existing literature on the BOD and economic costs associated with mobbing-related mental health disorders.
    METHODS: We conducted a scoping review following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines. A systematic search in National Library of Medicine's bibliographic database (MEDLINE), Latin American and Caribbean Literature in Health Sciences (LILACS), Embase, Scopus, and PsycInfo databases (until June 30, 2021) identified primary studies and reviews assessing BOD, COI, or PL in adults exposed to workplace mobbing. Articles were screened independently by two reviewers in two phases (title/abstract and full-text review). Data extraction focused on study characteristics and key findings, which were categorized into predefined thematic domains.
    RESULTS: Fourteen studies published between 2008 and 2020 met the selection criteria (71.4% primary studies, 28.6% reviews). The definition of mobbing varied across studies, and frequently, different terms were used interchangeably. None of the included studies quantified disease burden using standard metrics such as disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). Instead, PL was assessed indirectly through absenteeism, presenteeism, and work performance assessments.
    CONCLUSIONS: Mobbing is a significant occupational health issue with substantial mental health implications, yet research on its economic and disease burden remains limited. The heterogeneity in definitions and methodologies across studies hampers comparability and synthesis. Future research should adopt standardized definitions and employ robust burden-of-disease frameworks, such as DALYs and Quality-Adjusted Life Years (QALYs), to better quantify the impact of mobbing on mental health and work productivity.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.62641/aep.v53i5.1930
  2. Front Public Health. 2025 ;13 1652216
    Global, regional, and national disease burden of pneumoconiosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, tracheal-bronchus-and-lung cancer, and asthma attributable to occupational risks, 1990-2021: a systematic analysis for the global burden of disease study 2021.
    Shan Lin, Xuefeng Ding, Xin Dang, Qingyuan Zhan.
       Background: Occupational risks contribute substantially to the global burden of pneumoconiosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), tracheal-bronchus-and-lung (TBL) cancer, and asthma; however, comprehensive, up-to-date global, regional, and national estimates remain limited.
    Methods: Data from the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) 2021 were analyzed to quantify the burden of these diseases attributable to occupational exposure across 204 countries between 1990 and 2021, stratified by sex, age, socio-demographic index (SDI), and geographic region.
    Results: In 2021, occupational risks led to 30,546 deaths due to pneumoconiosis, 285,628 deaths due to COPD, 585,451 deaths due to TBL (the highest among the four diseases), and 18,315 deaths due to asthma, with disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) of 1.8, 6.1, 12.6, and 0.4 million, respectively. Male patients exhibited higher burdens of all diseases, reflecting greater exposure to male-dominated industries. Geographically, middle SDI regions had the highest absolute cases for pneumoconiosis and COPD, high-SDI regions for TBL cancer, and low-middle SDI regions for asthma. While age-standardized rates declined for most outcomes over time, the absolute burdens increased owing to population growth and aging, with demographic factors driving up to 80% of the increase in total cases. Health inequities persisted, with lower SDI regions bearing a disproportionate burden, despite modest improvements in absolute inequalities.
    Conclusion: These findings highlight the need for strengthened occupational health regulations, targeted interventions in high-risk regions, and policies addressing population dynamics to mitigate the impact of workplace exposure on respiratory health.
    Keywords:  asthma; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; occupational risks; pneumoconiosis; tracheal-bronchus-and-lung cancer
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1652216
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