Search resultsSystematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-Analysis on the Relationship Between Alcohol Consumption and Sickness Absence.
AIMS: Alcohol consumption (AC) may cause workplace absence, but the findings of individual studies vary markedly. To date, no dose-response meta-analysis (DRMA) of the relationship between AC and sickness absence (SA) has been completed. This paper aims to estimate the dose-response relationship between AC and the risk of SA based on published observational studies.
METHODS: We used DRMA and modelling to investigate the effects of varying doses of AC (including heavy episodic drinking (HED)) onSA.
RESULTS: The meta-analysis included 21 studies (12 cohort studies and 9 cross-sectional). It showed that HED, risky (20-40 g of alcohol/day) and high-risk (>40 g of alcohol/day) drinkers had an elevated risk of SA when compared with light-to-moderate drinkers for both sexes. Those who abstained from alcohol had a higher risk of SA than those who drink moderately.
CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that risky, high-risk drinking and HED may increase the risk of absenteeism. The implementation of population-based strategies may be appropriate to address the burdens of alcohol-related SA. Additionally, economic evaluations of alcohol policies should incorporate their impacts on SA. However, the current literature has substantial limitations, relying on modestly designed studies from just a few settings and more studies are needed-especially those that measure abstention in more nuancedways.