Investigating the Association Between the Co-Occurrence of Behavioral Health Risk Factors and Sick Days in General Hospital Patients

Int J Public Health. 2022 Sep 27:67:1605215. doi: 10.3389/ijph.2022.1605215. eCollection 2022.

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the co-occurrence of 4 behavioral health risk factors (BHRFs), namely tobacco smoking, alcohol at-risk drinking, physical inactivity and unhealthy diet and their association with sick days prior to hospitalization in general hospital patients. Methods: Over 10 weeks (11/2020-04/2021), all 18-64-year-old patients admitted to internal medicine, general and trauma surgery, and otorhinolaryngology wards of a tertiary care hospital were systematically approached. Among 355 eligible patients, 278 (78.3%) participated, and 256 (72.1%) were analyzed. Three BHRF sum scores were determined, including current tobacco smoking, alcohol use, physical inactivity and 1 of 3 indicators of unhealthy diet. Associations between BHRF sum scores and sick days in the past 6 months were analyzed using multivariate zero-inflated negative binomial regressions. Results: Sixty-two percent reported multiple BHRFs (≥2). The BHRF sum score was related to the number of sick days if any (p = 0.009) with insufficient vegetable and fruit intake as diet indicator. Conclusion: The majority of patients disclosed multiple BHRFs. These were associated with sick days prior to admission. The findings support the need to implement interventions targeting multiple BHRFs in general hospitals.

Keywords: accumulation; co-occurrence; health behaviors; health risk factors; sick days.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Alcohol Drinking
  • Hospitals, General*
  • Humans
  • Middle Aged
  • Risk Factors
  • Sedentary Behavior
  • Sick Leave*
  • Smoking / adverse effects
  • Young Adult