Assessment of Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI) questionnaire for migraine with the help of a smartphone app

ABSTRACT Background: Migraine is a major cause of disability, which affects many areas of life, including productivity at work. Measuring absenteeism and presenteeism resulting from migraine with the use of appropriate tools is essential for better understanding the impact of this disease. Objective: The aim of the present study was to assess the work impact of migraine using the Brazilian Portuguese version of Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI) questionnaire. Methods: This survey was carried out with the aid of a smartphone app (Dr Cefaleia for Doctors) containing the questionnaires: ID-Migraine, Headache Impact Test (HIT-6), and WPAI. The data were collected during a headache awareness event. Correlations were assessed between migraine impact (HIT-6) with WPAI parameters: a) work time missed (absenteeism), b) impairment at work (presenteeism), c) overall work productivity loss (absenteeism+presenteeism), and d) activity impairment outside work. Results: Overall, 305 subjects with headache were interviewed and 167 were classified as having migraine. No significant differences in migraine impact according to sex (p=0.8) and modality of work were registered (p=0.8). Females had significantly higher absenteeism score (p<0.001), but presenteeism score was not significantly different between genders (p=0.3). WPAI absenteeism and presenteeism scores significantly correlated with migraine impact (HIT-6). Conclusions: The results suggest WPAI Brazilian Portuguese version was efficient in assessing migraine related work impact. The use of an app with validated questionnaires facilitates the conduction of migraine impact research in different populations, allowing a better understanding of the burden of this disease.

摘要 背景：偏头痛是导致残疾的主要病因之一，可累及生活诸多领域，包括工作生产力。采用适宜工具量化偏头痛引发的缺勤与在职工作障碍，对于深入理解该疾病的影响至关重要。目的：本研究旨在采用巴西葡萄牙语版《工作生产力与活动受损量表（Work Productivity and Activity Impairment, WPAI）》评估偏头痛对工作的影响。方法：本调查依托面向医师的智能手机应用程序“Dr Cefaleia”开展，该程序包含ID-Migraine、头痛影响测试（Headache Impact Test, HIT-6）及WPAI三类问卷。数据采集于一场头痛认知宣传活动中。研究分析了偏头痛影响程度（HIT-6评分）与WPAI各项参数的相关性：a）缺勤工作时长（缺勤率），b）在职工作受损程度（在职障碍率），c）整体工作生产力损失（缺勤率+在职障碍率），以及d）工作外活动受损程度。结果：本研究共访谈305名头痛患者，其中167名被确诊为偏头痛。未观察到不同性别（p=0.8）及不同工作模式（p=0.8）下偏头痛影响程度存在显著差异。女性的缺勤评分显著更高（p<0.001），但不同性别间的在职障碍评分无显著差异（p=0.3）。WPAI的缺勤与在职障碍评分均与偏头痛影响程度（HIT-6评分）呈显著相关。结论：研究结果表明，巴西葡萄牙语版WPAI量表可有效评估偏头痛相关的工作影响。搭载经过验证的问卷的智能手机应用程序，能够简化不同人群的偏头痛影响研究开展流程，有助于更全面地理解该疾病带来的疾病负担。